Group to Support Islam and Muslims

French Forces Kill Jihadist Commander Ba Ag Moussa in Mali

France announced its anti-jihadist force in Mali had killed Ba Ag Moussa, the military commander of the Al-Qaeda-aligned Group to Support Islam and Muslims linked to attacks in the region.

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France Said to Plan Cuts in Sahel Force

France is hoping to cut back its military presence in the restive Sahel region to make room for a stronger European commitment, army sources say.

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Al-Qaeda-Linked Group Claims Attack on French Forces in Mali

Al-Qaeda-affiliated jihadists in Mali claimed responsibility on Thursday for a suicide raid on French forces in the north of the Sahel state this month, which left one soldier dead.

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Ivory Coast Creates Special Military Zone After Jihadist Attack

Ivory Coast has created a military zone in the north to prevent infiltration of militants from neighboring Burkina Faso.

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Burkina Army Says It Has Destroyed Two Jihadist ‘Bases’

Burkina Faso’s security forces said they destroyed two jihadist bases in the north and east of the country and arrested two suspects near the border with the Ivory Coast.

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Three Top Jihadists Dominate Sahel After Al-Qaeda Leader Death

Three leaders have been left dominating the jihadist insurgency in the Sahel, following the death of a top al-Qaeda commander in the West African state of Mali last week.

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Two Soldiers, Five Volunteers Killed in Burkina Attack

Two Burkina Faso soldiers and five civilian defense volunteers have been killed during an ambush on a military patrol in the restive north of the country, security sources said Tuesday. The attack occurred on Monday as soldiers from the military detachment in Banh in Loroum province were carrying out a patrol in the area, the sources said. “Two soldiers were killed along with five civilians,” a security source told AFP. Another security source said the civilian casualties were “defense volunteers who were with the military unit during the patrol,” adding two soldiers also died. The source said four others in the patrol were wounded, without giving further details. Al-Qaeda-affiliated jihadist alliance GSIM claimed responsibility for the attack, claiming to have killed “nine soldiers” in an ambush and taken weapons and vehicles, in a text sent to AFP late Tuesday. The Mali-based GSIM (Group to Support Islam and Muslims) comprises several different jihadist groups in the Sahel. On May 11, jihadists killed eight Burkinabe soldiers during an attack close to the Niger border in Yagha province, security sources said at the time. Burkina Faso is part of a regional effort to battle an Islamist insurgency, along with neighboring Mali and Niger, Mauritania and Chad. However, …

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Mali PM visits Kidal for first time since 2014, a day after 5 French soldiers injured in attack

Mali's Prime Minister Soumeylou Boubeye Maiga made a landmark visit to the restive northern town of Kidal on Friday, the first since 2014 by a head of government to to the area

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