So if you missed the news, since friday the french army has officially been fighting in Mali against the northern rebels, after a call for help from the malian interim president who faced a new wave of assaults targetting Mopti, a major city in central Mali, and that could have gone all the way to the capital Bamako. Seeing that the "friendly country" (Mali was a french colony until 1960) could not survive until the african-led operation planned in september, french president Hollande authorized air raids and bombings; the involvement of french ground troops on the frontlines is unclear at this point, though they have been gathering in Bamako from neighbouring African countries such as Tchad and Ivory Coast, in order to, officially, train the malian army that will retake the northern half of the country.
The intervention enjoys a relative consensus on the national plane, and both the US and the EU have anounced their support, though it seems they will not engage in the military operations themselves. The french government insists that the operation is led with respect to international laws, and that they seek to prevent the installation of a djihadist sanctuary that could destabilize the region and target Europe.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-20991719
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-17582909