Mr Hollande is set to visit Timbuktu, recently seized from Islamist rebels by French and Malian troops

France’s President Francois Hollande is to visit Mali, where three weeks of targeted French air strikes have forced Islamist militants to retreat.

Mr Hollande will fly into Bamako to meet interim President Dioncounda Traore, his office says.

He is set to visit Timbuktu, recently seized from Islamist rebels by French and Malian troops, on Saturday.

The French military intervention has recaptured large parts of northern Mali from Islamist groups.