France’s Desert Operation Against Al-Qaeda Chief

French soldiers deployed to Operation Barkhane in the Sahel. Image: État-Major des Armées

The Defense Post: ‘Capture Not Possible:’ France’s Desert Operation Against Al-Qaeda Chief

In a desert wilderness in Mali, close to the Algerian border, pitted with isolated rocks and weighed by oppressive heat, French special forces and combat helicopters begin an operation.

At its climax, they claim one of the greatest successes of France’s deployment in the Sahel region of north Africa — the killing of the head of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) Abdelmalek Droukdel.

The French military, for the first time, provided details on Thursday of how late last week it “neutralized” the man it has called “the third deputy” of Al-Qaeda’s leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri.

Officials describe the death of the Algerian Droukdel as the fruit of meticulous intelligence work. This was concluded by a military intervention in broad daylight, about ten kilometers (6.2 miles) from the Algerian border, east of the Malian town of Tessalit.

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WNU Editor:The French rarely give details on how they conduct their anti-terrorism operations.