This undated image provided by Rewards For Justice shows a published lawsuit by Adnan Abu Walid al-Sahrawi, the leader of the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara. French President Emmanuel Macron announced the death of al-Sahrawis on Wednesday, September 15, 2021 and considered the assassination to be “a major success” for the French army after more than eight years fighting against it. the extremists in the Sahel. Macron tweeted that al-Sahrawi “was neutralized by French forces,” but gave no further details. (Rewards for justice through AP)
This undated image provided by Rewards For Justice shows a published lawsuit by Adnan Abu Walid al-Sahrawi, the leader of the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara. French President Emmanuel Macron announced the death of al-Sahrawis on Wednesday, September 15, 2021, and called the assassination a “major success” for the French army after more than eight years of fighting. against extremists in the Sahel. Macron tweeted that al-Sahrawi “was neutralized by French forces,” but gave no further details. (Rewards for justice through AP)
BAMAKO, Mali (AP) – The President of France announced the death of the Islamic State to the leader of the Greater Sahara, describing on Wednesday afternoon which said that the assassination of Adnan Abu Walid al-Sahrawi was “a important success “for the French army after more than eight years fighting extremists in the Sahel.
French President Emmanuel Macron has tweeted about the fact that al-Sahrawi “was neutralized by French forces,” but gave no further details. It was not announced where al-Sahrawi died, although the Islamic State group is active on the Mali-Niger border.
“The nation is thinking tonight of all its heroes who died for France in the Sahel in the Serval and Barkhane operations, of the grieving families, of all their wounded,” Macron tweeted. “His sacrifice is not in vain.”
Rumors of the militant leader’s death had been circulating in Mali for weeks, although authorities in the region had not confirmed it. It was not possible to immediately independently verify the claim or know how the remains had been identified.
“This is a decisive blow against this terrorist group,” French Defense Minister Florence Parly posted on Twitter. “Our struggle continues.”
Al-Sahrawi had claimed responsibility for a 2017 attack in Niger that killed four U.S. military personnel and four people with the Nigerian army. His group has also kidnapped foreigners in the Sahel and is believed to still be holding American Jeffrey Woodke, who was abducted from his home in Niger in 2016.
The extremist leader was born in the disputed territory of Western Sahara and later joined the Polisario Front. After spending time in Algeria, he headed to northern Mali, where he became a major figure in the group known as MUJAO that controlled the main city north of Gao in 2012.
A French-led military operation the following year expelled Islamic extremists from power in Gao and other northern cities, although these elements later regrouped and retaliated.
The Malian group MUJAO was loyal to the regional branch of Al Qaeda. But in 2015, al-Sahrawi posted an audio message promising allegiance to the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria.
The French army has been fighting Islamic extremists in the Sahel region, where France has been the colonial power since the 2013 intervention in northern Mali. Recently, however, he announced that he would reduce his military presence in the region, with plans to withdraw 2,000 troops early next year.
The news of al-Sahrawi’s death comes when France’s global struggle against the Islamic State organization reaches the headlines in Paris. The main accused in the trial against the 2015 Paris attacks said on Wednesday that those coordinated killings were retaliation for French airstrikes against the Islamic State group, and called the death of 130 innocent people “personal” as he recognized his role for the first time.
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Larson reported from Dakar, Senegal. Associated Press writer Angela Charlton in Paris contributed to this report.