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The office of President Emmanuel Macron reported this Sunday, January 23, that a French soldier died during an attack on the Barkhane operation camp in Gao, in northern Mali. A total of 53 French soldiers have died since 2014 in the framework of the deployment in the Sahel, a mission in which 5,100 French soldiers act to prevent the advance of extremists.
The Government of Emmanuel Macron paid tribute to Brigadier Alexandre Martin of the 54th Artillery Regiment in Hyères, who died on Saturday, January 22, in a mortar attack in northern Mali.
His death “confirms France’s determination to continue the fight against terrorism in the region, together with its allies,” said a statement from the Elysee.
“Deep sadness at the news of the death in combat of Brigadier Alexandre Martin on January 22 in Gao, Mali. I salute his commitment,” the chief of staff of the French Army said through his Twitter account.
Deep sadness at the announcement of the death in combat of Brigadier Alexandre Martin on 01/22 in Gao in Mali. Je salue son engagement. Toutes mes penseses vont vers sa famille, ses proches et ses frères d’armes. pic.twitter.com/uGk9l4wurj
— Chef d’état-major des armées (@CEMA_FR) January 23, 2022
More than 4,000 French soldiers are deployed in the Sahel region of West Africa as part of the Barkhane anti-terrorist operation, most of them in Mali.
France, which first deployed troops to the African country nine years ago to fight a jihadist insurgency, has spent around 880 million euros a year on a mission that has so far cost the lives of 53 French soldiers.
Paris has begun to reduce its presence in Mali, hoping to halve the contingent by the summer of 2023, and has asked its allies in the European Union (EU) to provide more support in security operations.
Now Paris is considering an earlier exit amid rapidly deteriorating relations with the military junta that has ruled Mali since the August 2020 coup.
The refusal of the Board to organize the planned elections to incorporate a civilian government has unleashed the fury of the French Government and has provoked sanctions by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), a bloc made up of 15 nations.
Paris also condemned Mali’s alleged hiring of the Wagner mercenary group that the European Union believes is acting under the orders of the Russian government.
with Reuters and AFP
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