April 2, 2019 – A French military doctor was killed in Mali when his armoured vehicle hit an improvised explosive device during an operation against “armed terrorist groups”, the French presidency and army said Tuesday. The doctor was gravely wounded and died of his injuries, Steiger said, adding that the other soldier was not in a serious condition. The doctor was the 24th member of the French military to die in Mali since France intervened in 2013 and drove back jihadist groups who had taken control of the north of the country. Macron also reiterated France’s “full support for Mali and the United Nations forces in implementing the peace accord” reached in 2015 with some armed groups. The violence persists despite the presence of a strong French military contingent, UN peacekeepers, and the creation of a five-nation military force in the Sahel region.

Source: The North Africa Journal April 02, 2019 21:56 UTC