Frustration at the way in which Mali's president is dealing with a Tuareg uprising has led its military to take a dangerous gamble.
It did not take long for the Libyan conflict to spill over borders in the Sahel region - and now Mali seems to have paid the highest price so far following a coup by disgruntled soldiers.
The trouble began when hundreds of Malian combatants who had fought to defend the late Libyan leader, Muammar Gaddafi, fled back home with weapons at the end of last year and formed the most powerful Tuareg-led rebel group the region have known - the Azawad National Liberation Movement (MNLA).
