Malians protest military intervention in Libya

Thousands of people marched through Mali's capital to protest against the Western-led military intervention in Libya and show their support for Libyan leader Col. Moammar Gadhafi.

The crowd on Friday marched first to the French Embassy and then to the U.S. Embassy, yelling "Down with Sarkozy! Down with Obama!"

Mali has close relations with Libya. Libya's government has invested heavily in Mali and Gadhafi has financed the construction of mosques across the country.

Malian President Amadou Toumani Toure is on an African Union panel tasked with dealing with the crisis in Libya. Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, who is also on the panel, has said the AU is opposed to any military intervention in Libya.