United Nations head Ban Ki-moon has said that at least 11,000 peacekeepers will be needed in Mali to ward off threats from Islamic terrorists.
The peacekeepers would be backed up by a second force, lead by African troops, that would concentrate on combat operations against the remaining terrorists hiding in the northern mountains. French forces that are scheduled to leave at the end of April currently head combat operations. Continue reading
Islamic terrorists found a way to sneak past checkpoints into the northern city of Gao but were repelled by French and Malian troops after the city residents sounded the alarm.
Gao had been under control of Islamic terrorists for ten months before French troops liberated the city in January. A strict version of Sharia Law was imposed on the town that included cutting off hands of suspected thieves. Continue reading
Al-Qaeda has released a statement that it has killed a French citizen kidnapped in 2011.
The terrorists have claimed they killed Philippe Vernon on March 10th in retaliation for France’s intervention in Mali. France’s troops stopped terrorists associated with Al-Qaeda from overtaking the Malian capital. Continue reading
French forces have overtaken and dismantled a major al-Qaeda base in the northern mountains of Mali.
French defense minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told the BBC that a “very impressive” amount of weapons had been captured at the site. Tons of AK-47s, grenade launchers and even pickup trucks were found hidden inside natural caves in the region. Continue reading
French President Francois Hollande has announced a timetable for the removal of all French troops from the battle with Islamists in Mali.
The first wave of troops will be withdrawn in March and the remainder will be gone by the end of April. Over 4,000 French troops have been deployed to the region to help stop an advance of a brutal al-Qaeda affiliated terrorist group. Continue reading
Chad’s military reported the killing of Islamist leader Abdelhamid Abou Zeid in an operation in northern Mali over the weekend.
French military officials said it was “probable” that Abou Zeid was killed along with fellow leader Mokhtar Belmokhtar, but that until they had a body, they would not officially state the terrorist leaders were dead. Continue reading
A senior UN official has told the BBC that hundreds of thousands of Malian nationals who fled in the wake of Islamic terrorists taking over the northern part of the nation have refused to return out of fear the terrorists will regain control of the region.
The refugees cited a pattern of rape and amputations against women and children by the Islamists as the leading fears preventing their return. Continue reading
A “manifesto” discovered by journalists covering the fighting between French forces and Islamic terrorists in Mali appears to indicate divisions between the terror groups trying to take over the nation.
A French newspaper published the paper allegedly written by Abdel Malek Droukdel, the head of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. AQIM is the leading terror group in the attempt to overthrow the Mali government. Continue reading
French President Francois Hollande has called the latest offensive by French troops in Mali the “final phase.”
The French troops joined with Chadian troops in the Ifoghas mountains where they say the members of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb are believed to be hiding and attempting to regroup. At least 65 terrorists have been killed in the fighting along with 13 Chad troops. Continue reading
The United States has deployed armed troops to Niger in a mission to support the French war against terrorists in Mali.
In a manner that will allow the U.S. to deny direct involvement in the war against al-Qaeda, 100 troops have been sent to neighboring Niger to provide “intelligence support” in the attempt to drive terrorists out of Mali. Continue reading