LIBERATION OF FRENCH HOSTAGES OF BENIN AND DEATH OF TWO COMMANDOS MARINE
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| Four hostages held in the Sahel, including two French, one American and one South Korean, were released during an operation conducted Thursday night by French forces. Emmanuel Macron "welcomes the release of four hostages in the Sahel, including our two compatriots, Patrick Picque and Laurent Lassimouillas, abducted May 1 in Benin," said the French presidency in a statement. "In addition to the two French hostages, a US citizen and a South Korean national have also been released. The disappearances of the American and the South Korean had never been made public. Even European security sources in the Sahel were unaware.
Two members of the French Special Forces died during the operation conducted on Thursday night in northern Burkina Faso "This release was achieved through a military operation, led by the French forces in the night of Thursday to Friday, in northern Burkina Faso," continues the Elysee. "During this one, two soldiers died in battle, the master Cédric de Pierrepont and the master Alain Bertoncello, both petty officers in the command of the special operations. " Both belonged to the Hubert commando, specialized in counterterrorism, the release of hostages and underwater action with swimmers. The commando, belonging to one of the seven of the Navy, was based in Paris. Saint-Mandrier, in the Var ,. Four kidnappers were also killed during the assault. US support for intelligence This operation "was made possible by the mobilization of the means of Barkhane, the implication of the Burkinabé forces and the American support in intelligence", indicated the chief of staff of the armies, the general François Lecointre. "These factors were essential for the success of the operation, ensuring responsiveness as soon as the announcement of the disappearance of the two Frenchmen, the availability of resources and the overall coherence of the operation," he said. he in a statement. The two Frenchmen had disappeared last May 1st during a safari in the park of the Pendjari, then being in the North West of Benin, on a sector disadvised by the Quai d'Orsay. It should be remembered that this region is regularly targeted by jihadist groups linked to Al Qaeda and the Islamic State (IS) organization. The two French were taken hostage and, in transit in Burkina Faso, were to be taken to Mali by their captors. Jihadist group Katiba Macina The kidnappers belonged to Katiba Macina, a jihadist group active in central Mali whose leader Amadou Koufa has become in recent years a figure of jihadism in Mali and by extension in the Sahel. It catalyzes the frustrations of the young people of his region, mainly from the Fulani community, frustrations exploited for the global jihadist project. Aged sixty years and from the city of Niafunké, he became since January 2015 the spearhead of the Islamist insurgency in central Mali, where 2018 more than 500 civilians were killed according to the United Nations . In a video of November 8, 2018 he accuses France of sending "his dogs in the Macina", but, above all, his message is for the first time clearly intended to rally to the jihadist cause, well beyond his region , the Peuls "massacred because they raised the flag of Islam". "I appeal to the Fulani, wherever they are: in Senegal, Mali, Niger, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Ghana and Cameroon," he intimates. Florence Parly, the Minister of the Armed Forces, recalled that "the terrorists who attack France and the French must know that we will spare no effort to hunt them down and fight them". At the beginning of next week, the Head of State will preside at the Invalides, a ceremony of national homage to the two naval commandos killed in the operation. |
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| Britney Delsey for DayNewsWorld | |
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