Friday, November 22, 2024

30 insurgents in Mali killed in gun battle

Must read

Nigerian High Commission apartments in Ghana demolished

Some new apartments built at the residence of the Nigerian High Commissioner in Ghana’s capital city Accra, have been demolished by bulldozers. The apartments have been constructed to...

Covid-19: Ghana records significant recovery numbers

Ghanaian health officials on Saturday said over 10,000 persons infected with the coronavirus have now recovered. The significant number of recoveries means the country now...

DR Congo: President’s ex-chief of staff jailed 20 years for corruption

The ex-chief of staff of the president of the Democratic Republic of Congo has been jailed 20 years by a high court. Vital Kamerhe was...

Covid-19: Zimbabwe’s health minister arrested, charged for graft

Zimbabwe's Health Minister Obadiah Moyo has been arrested over corruption allegations related to procurement of medical equipment worth $60 million. Moyo is accused of illegally...
Isaac Kaledzihttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_Kaledzi
Isaac Kaledzi is an experienced and award winning journalist from Ghana. He has worked for several media brands both in Ghana and on the International scene. Isaac Kaledzi is currently serving as an African Correspondent for DW.

French and Malian troops killed about 30 Islamist insurgents during a gunbattle in a region near the border with Niger, where Islamic State are known to be active, the French army said on Thursday.

West Africa’s arid Sahel region has seen a rise in violence by militant groups, some with links to al Qaeda and Islamic State, that is drawing an increasingly aggressive response from countries including France and the United States.

It was a Mali-based al Qaeda affiliate, Jama’a Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM), that claimed responsibility for a March 2 assault on the French Embassy and army headquarters in Burkina Faso’s capital that killed eight people.

Colonel Patrik Steiger said soldiers from France’s Barkhane force and Malian troops were on a reconnaissance mission 90 km (56 miles) south of Menaka on Sunday when they encountered several dozen Islamist fighters, some on motorcycles.

A number of Malian soldiers died in the ensuing gunbattle, Steiger said, without giving more details. No French troops were hurt.

Five countries – Burkina Faso, Niger, Chad, Mali and Mauritania – backed by France, launched a new taskforce last year to tackle Islamist militants in the region, to which international donors have committed half a billion dollars.

 

Source: Reuters

- Advertisement -

More articles

- Advertisement -

Latest article

Nigerian High Commission apartments in Ghana demolished

Some new apartments built at the residence of the Nigerian High Commissioner in Ghana’s capital city Accra, have been demolished by bulldozers. The apartments have been constructed to...

Covid-19: Ghana records significant recovery numbers

Ghanaian health officials on Saturday said over 10,000 persons infected with the coronavirus have now recovered. The significant number of recoveries means the country now...

DR Congo: President’s ex-chief of staff jailed 20 years for corruption

The ex-chief of staff of the president of the Democratic Republic of Congo has been jailed 20 years by a high court. Vital Kamerhe was...

Covid-19: Zimbabwe’s health minister arrested, charged for graft

Zimbabwe's Health Minister Obadiah Moyo has been arrested over corruption allegations related to procurement of medical equipment worth $60 million. Moyo is accused of illegally...

Ghana’s new law that jails citizens not wearing facemask 10 years

Ghanaians who fail to wear the face masks in compliance with a presidential directive risk going to jail for ten years. They also face a...