French military forces have carried out a daring raid in Mali in which they eliminated or detained 23 Islamist terrorists, and killed or captured important leaders of two regional “Jihadist” groups, a top army officer said according to kuna.net.kw.
The French army Chief-of-Staff General Francois Lecointre said that the raid took place in the north-east of Mali and the attack successfully targeted the Ansar Al-Din and Al Mourabitoune terrorist groups.
The operation was carried out overnight on February 13-14, the General said in the statement.
“Twenty-three terrorists, including the chiefs of Ansar Al-Din as well as of Al-Mourabitoune, known for their abuses against the Malian population, were killed or captured in this operation,” Lecointre indicated.
He also noted that the operation included air strikes followed by helicopter attacks and intervention by ground troops, adding that this was “a significant blow to armed terrorist groups.” France has deployed around 4,000 troops in the Sahel region in an operation dubbed “Barkhane,” which covers Chad, Mali, Mauritania, Niger and Burkina Faso.
