DJENNE, Mali (AP) — Pentagon officials say the U.S. airlift of French forces to Bamako could continue for another two weeks. It's expected to take about 30 C-17 flights to get everything there. The U.S. Air Force is keeping between eight and 10 people at the airport to help with the incoming and outgoing flights. These are the U.S. Air Force personnel who will stay only until the airlift is completed. The U.S. Air Force already has flown five C-17 flights into Bamako, delivering more than 80 French troops and 124 tons of equipment. The U.S. is not providing direct aid to the Malian military because the democratically elected government was overthrown last March in a coup. The French-led operation to oust Islamic extremists from northern Mali began Jan. 11.
US begins transporting French troops to Mali
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An unidentified man takes a picture of the charred remains of trucks used by radical Islamists on the outskirt of Diabaly, Mali, some 460kms (320 miles) North of the capital Bamako Monday Jan. 21, 2013. French and Malian troops took control Monday of the town of Diabaly, patrolling the streets in armored personnel carriers and inspecting the charred remains of a pickup truck with a mounted machine gun left behind by the fleeing militants. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)
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Children and adults alike play soccer on a dusty field in Segou, central Mali, some 240 km (140 miles) from Bamako Monday Jan. 21, 2013. French troops in armored personnel carriers rolled through the streets of Diabaly on Monday, winning praise from residents of this besieged town after Malian forces retook control of it with French help a week after radical Islamists invaded. The Islamists also have deserted the town of Douentza, which they had held since September, according to a local official who said French and Malian forces arrived there on Monday as well. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)
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An elderly man looks at the charred remains of a truck used by radical Islamists on the outskirts of Diabaly, Mali, some 460kms (320 miles) North of the capital Bamako, after French and Malian troops took control of the town Monday, Jan. 21, 2013. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)
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A Malian soldier salvages a mattress inside a military camp used by radical Islamists and bombarded by French warplanes in Diabaly, Mali, some 460kms (320 miles) North of the capital Bamako, Monday Jan. 21, 2013. French and Malian troops took control Monday of the town of Diabaly, patrolling the streets in armored personnel carriers and inspecting the charred remains of a pickup truck with a mounted machine gun left behind by the fleeing militants. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)
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A Malian soldier walks inside a military camp used by radical Islamists and bombarded by French warplanes, in Diabaly, Mali, some 460kms (320 miles) North of the capital Bamako Monday Jan. 21, 2013. French and Malian troops took control Monday of the town of Diabaly, patrolling the streets in armored personnel carriers and inspecting the charred remains of a pickup truck with a mounted machine gun left behind by the fleeing militants. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)
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French foreign legionnaires take position outside Marakala, central Mali, some 240kms (140 miles) from Bamako Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2013. French troops in armored personnel carriers rolled through the streets of Diabaly on Monday, winning praise from residents of this besieged town after Malian forces retook control of it with French help a week after radical Islamists invaded. The Islamists also have deserted the town of Douentza, which they had held since September, according to a local official who said French and Malian forces arrived there on Monday as well. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)
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Malians hang on the back of a packed minibus as they drive to Marakala, central Mali, some 240kms (140 miles) from Bamako Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2013. French troops in armored personnel carriers rolled through the streets of Diabaly on Monday, winning praise from residents of this besieged town after Malian forces retook control of it with French help a week after radical Islamists invaded. The Islamists also have deserted the town of Douentza, which they had held since September, according to a local official who said French and Malian forces arrived there on Monday as well. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)
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A convoy of French soldiers drives north as they pass through Segou, central Mali, some 240kms (140 miles) from Bamako Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2013. French troops in armored personnel carriers rolled through the streets of Diabaly on Monday, winning praise from residents of this besieged town after Malian forces retook control of it with French help a week after radical Islamists invaded. The Islamists also have deserted the town of Douentza, which they had held since September, according to a local official who said French and Malian forces arrived there on Monday as well. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)
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Malian women sift wheat in a field near Segou, central Mali, some 240kms (140 miles) from Bamako Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2013. French troops in armored personnel carriers rolled through the streets of Diabaly on Monday, winning praise from residents of this besieged town after Malian forces retook control of it with French help a week after radical Islamists invaded. The Islamists also have deserted the town of Douentza, which they had held since September, according to a local official who said French and Malian forces arrived there on Monday as well. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)
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Italian Defense Minister Giampaolo Di Paola, left, and Foreign Minister Giulio Terzi, report on the ongoing situation in Mali to the foreign and defense commissions of the Senate and the Lower Chamber, in the Mappamondo Hall of the Lower Chamber, in Rome, Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2013. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
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Children watch a convoy of French soldiers drive north as the pass through Segou, central Mali, some 240kms (140 miles) from Bamako Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2013. French troops in armored personnel carriers rolled through the streets of Diabaly on Monday, winning praise from residents of this besieged town after Malian forces retook control of it with French help a week after radical Islamists invaded. The Islamists also have deserted the town of Douentza, which they had held since September, according to a local official who said French and Malian forces arrived there on Monday as well. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)
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Malian women sift wheat in a field near Segou, central Mali, some 240kms (140 miles) from Bamako Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2013. French troops in armored personnel carriers rolled through the streets of Diabaly on Monday, winning praise from residents of this besieged town after Malian forces retook control of it with French help a week after radical Islamists invaded. The Islamists also have deserted the town of Douentza, which they had held since September, according to a local official who said French and Malian forces arrived there on Monday as well. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)
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