Mali cancels return of famous music festival after al-Qaida attack

Fabled Festival au Désert was coming back to Timbuktu after years in exile but officials blocked it at last minute over security fears The fabled Festival au Désert was returning to Timbuktu, but it was a carefully guarded secret. Musicians had packed their instruments for the journey to northern Mali. Technical teams had already loaded their sound systems into canoes and taken the river route to the ancient city of learning. None of the festival-going public had yet been told, but the organis...