. Military Space News .
TERROR WARS
France says kills top Al-Qaeda commander in Sahel
By Daphn� BENOIT
Bamako (AFP) Feb 22, 2019

French armed forces have killed a top jihadist leader in an air and ground ambush in Mali, the government said on Friday, ending a years-long hunt for a man accused of masterminding the kidnapping of Westerners in the Sahel region.

Djamel Okacha, an Algerian commander in Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), was killed on Thursday after French commandos, helicopters and a drone hit a column of vehicles he was travelling in north of Timbuktu, French officials said.

Okacha, a jihadist veteran known also as Yahya Abou El Hamame, was "the mastermind and financer of several attacks," the defence ministry said. US officials had accused him of kidnapping a number of Westerners in North and West Africa.

French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe arrived late Friday in the capital, Bamako, along with Defence Minister Florence Parly, on a visit to show "support" for Mali, where some 4,500 French troops have been deployed since 2014 to retake the north of the country after it fell to jihadist fighters.

Earlier Parly had described the killing of the jihadist commander as a "spectacular action", saying it followed a manhunt which lasted several years.

His death "deals a very hard blow to terrorist groups in the Sahel," she said.

"When commandos approached, (jihadist) pickups opened fire, prompting the helicopters to return fire," a spokesman for the French military command said.

A total of 11 "terrorists", including El Hamame, were killed, he said.

El Hamame is suspected of involvement in the 2009 assassination of a US citizen, Christopher Leggett, in Mauritania, along with an attack the same year against the French embassy in Nouakchott.

- Jihadist history -

El Hamame reportedly served as AQIM's "governor" in Timbuktu when the city was held by Islamist militants from April 2012 to January 2013.

The jihadist commander was believed to be second in command of the Group to Support Islam and Muslims (GSIM), also known as Nusrat al-Islam, led by Iyad Ag Ghali.

The group was formed by the merger of Ansar Dine, the Macina Liberation Front, Al-Mourabitoun and El Hamame's Sahel branch of AQIM.

El Hamame, aged about 40, took charge of Al-Qaeda's operations in southern Algeria and northern Mali in 2013 when he replaced Abdelhamid Abou Zeid, who was himself killed in fighting French-led forces in northern Mali.

El Hamame rose in the ranks of the group despite not having gone to Afghanistan as other key militants such as Mokhtar Belmokhtar, the one-eyed Islamist leader who masterminded an assault on an Algerian gas plant that left 37 foreign hostages dead in January 2013.

Born in the north Algerian town of Reghaia, El Hamame spent 18 months in prison in Algeria in the 1990s when the country was mired in Islamist violence.

In addition to French troops in Mali, around 15,000 peacekeepers have been deployed in the country as part of the United Nations stabilisation mission known as MINUSMA.

This followed the signing of a peace accord in 2015 between the Bamako government and armed groups.

- 'Sustained cessation of hostilities' -

The US-based Carter Center, an independent observer to the implementation of the accord, released its third report on Friday noting "the sustained cessation of hostilities between the signatories" but stressed that "the core commitments of the agreement remain unfulfilled."

The actions needed include "creating the new, decentralized political system, including devolving significant powers to the regions and putting in place the reconstituted armed forces through the equitable integration of the ex-combatants," said the report from the center founded by former US president Jimmy Carter

But jihadist groups have continued operating in Mali and neighbouring countries.

Supported by France, Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger have formed the so-called G5 Sahel group to fight the jihadists.


Related Links
The Long War - Doctrine and Application


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


TERROR WARS
'Voice of Paris attacks' killed in Syria: sources
Paris (AFP) Feb 21, 2019
A top French Islamic State jihadist who became notorious after voicing an audio recording claiming responsibility for the November 2015 attacks in Paris has been killed in an overnight airstrike, security sources told AFP. Fabien Clain, who is believed to have gone to Syria in March 2015, was killed in the terror group's last Syrian redoubt of Baghouz, the sources said on condition of anonymity. Clain is a seasoned jihadist, who was found guilty of helping send extremists to fight US forces in I ... read more

Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.



Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

TERROR WARS
Poland to buy US rocket system for $414 million

U.S. Army to purchase Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system

US Army to buy two Israeli Iron Dome air defense systems

Raytheon, Lockheed contracted for Patriot systems for foreign customers

TERROR WARS
Israel Aerospace Industries shows off 'loitering' missile at India air show

Saab contracted to upgrade Australian Army's rocket warning system

UAE signs major missile deals with US giant Raytheon

Pence hails $414 mn deal on US rockets for Poland

TERROR WARS
Illegally drones pose an outsized risk for US aviation and the public

Hughes satellite modems power beyond-line-of-sight comms for UAVs

UK plans drone 'swarm squadrons' after Brexit

German Forces Begin Training Courses on Armed Israeli Surveillance Drones

TERROR WARS
Raytheon awarded $406M for Army aircraft radio system

Lockheed Martin to develop cyber electronic warfare pod for UAVs

Britain to spend $1.3M for satellite antennas in light of Brexit

Reflectarray Antenna offers high performance in small package: DARPA

TERROR WARS
BAE awarded $575M for Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle production

Saab to supply U.S. Army with M4 weapon system

State Dept. approves possible engine sale for Israeli armored vehicles

Singapore defends conscription after string of deaths

TERROR WARS
UAE announces more than $3B in defense deals at IDEX conference

Germany firm on Saudi arms ban despite British warning

How Shanahan may end up as permanent Pentagon chief

Planes, tanks, subs: the Thai generals' shopping list

TERROR WARS
U.S. destroyer Cook, NATO ships enter Black Sea ahead of exercise

Former New Zealand PM denies writing glowing China op-ed

US, Britain conduct security drills, training in South China Sea

US, Japan, Australia start Cope North 2019 at Guam air base

TERROR WARS
Breakthrough nanoscience discovery made on flight from New York to Jerusalem

Customized mix of materials for three-dimensional micro- and nanostructures

Nano drops a million times smaller than a teardrop explodes 19th century theory

Rice lab adds porous envelope to aluminum plasmonics









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.