France concludes the Barkhane military mission in Mali, after nine years

First modification: 08/15/2022 – 20:05

After almost a decade of military mission against jihadism, France and its allies leave Mali.

“Today at 1:00 p.m. (Paris time), the last military unit of the Barkhane force present on Malian territory crossed the border between Mali and Niger,” the French Defense Ministry said in a statement.

This is the end of Operation Barkhane, a military deployment that began in 2013, when France intervened to expel Islamic extremists, in an attempt to prevent insurgent groups from gaining a foothold in the region.

France thus completes its withdrawal, six months after it was announced by President Emmanuel Macron.

The decision came amid heightened tensions between Paris and the military junta, led by Colonel Assimi Goita, which controls the African nation. The new authorities have emerged from two successive coups, in 2020 and 2021, and are reluctant to return power to civilians.

Additionally, the presence of the troops did not seem to stop a wave of deadly terror attacks, as Paris struggled to get more Western allies to contribute to the force.

France is also withdrawing from the UN peacekeeping mission in Malian territory (MINUSMA), which the UN Security Council had extended until 2023.

The fate of MINUSMA remains unclear after Bamako suspended the mission’s troop rotations.

Barkhane mission relocated to Niger

French forces will no longer carry out missions or pursue militants in Mali. However, the mission is transferred to Niger.

Macron and other European leaders have repeatedly said that military withdrawals from Malian territory will not result in the abandonment of the inhabitants of the Sahel region, plagued by the presence of Islamic extremists.

“France remains committed to the Sahel (wider region), in the Gulf of Guinea and the Lake Chad region, with all partners committed to stability and the fight against terrorism,” the French Presidency said in a statement.

Niger will become the hub for French troops, with some 1,000 troops based in the capital Niamey, alongside fighter jets, drones and helicopters, Elysee Palace officials said in July.

Additionally, between 300 and 400 soldiers will be sent for special operations with the troops of Niger, in the border regions with Burkina Faso and Mali.

Between 700 and 1,000 more will be stationed in Chad and an undisclosed number of special forces will operate in other parts of the region.

Coups weakened Operation Barkhane and increased Russian influence

Coups in Mali, Chad and Burkina Faso have weakened France’s alliances in its former colonies and encouraged extremists, who control large swaths of desert and swaths of mountains. In addition, they have opened the door to greater Russian influence.

In 2021, as Goita carried out his second coup, President Emmanuel Macron insisted he would withdraw his nation’s forces if civilian rule was not restored to the West African nation.

But as the security situation deteriorated, anger against the foreign military operation grew and Malians staged protests demanding an end to the French presence in the country.

Goita has strengthened his country’s ties with Moscow, notably through the alleged hiring of Russian mercenaries from the Wagner Group.

It is an organization that the European Union accuses of committing brutal human rights violations, such as torture, executions and sexual assaults in the countries where they have been hired by their governments.

Mali is still struggling to stem an Islamist insurgency that took hold after a 2012 uprising. Terrorist attacks have spread to neighboring countries, killing thousands and displacing millions in West Africa’s Sahel region.

With Reuters, AP and local media