M. le Maire, Ousmane K. SIMAGA, arrived in Richmond the evening of 24 July, 2012 for a 7-day mission of urgency from his hometown of Segou MALI. The northern rebellion and March 22 coup d'etat have resulted in a burgeoning crisis in the north that is driving Malians of all ethnicities from their homes into neighboring countries and southwest into the cities along the main road toward Bamako, and beyond. Segou, a city of 135,000, has so far received more than 7,200 displaced men, women and children from northern cities, Summary of Number of Displaced Persons in Segou (22 March - 20 July), which is roughly equivalent to Richmond receiving 11,000 people. Click here for Mali and Overview of Crisis . To ameliorate the situation which also pressures local residents' capacity to remain self-sufficient, the city of Segou is asking for immediate assistance: 1) Direct financial contributions through the Virginia Friends of Mali to support their 3 top needs: fo...