Leaders propose coalition to combat extremists

West African leaders discussed setting up a force to combat extremists in the region, the regional economic body said on Saturday.

The decisions were announced after about a dozen heads of state, including presidents from Cote d'Ivoire, Niger and Mali, met in Dakar, Senegal, for the 49th session of the Economic Community of West African States.

"We must constantly reconcile the free movement of people and goods with security measures," said the new president of the body, Marcel Alain de Souza of Benin, at the opening of the daylong summit. "The multiplication of the number of zones of terrorism in our space obliges us to share information on all activities and to coordinate and mobilize our resources."