The French military said on Thursday that about 40 fighters traveling on motorcycles have been killed near Niger’s border with Burkina Faso in French drone strikes.
In a statement, the French military called the attacks a “new strategic breakthrough” for France’s counter-terrorism efforts in Africa’s Sahel region, codenamed Operation Barkhane.
“Intelligence received from Nigerian units in contact with the column confirmed that the motorcycles belonged to an armed terrorist group operating between Burkina Faso and Niger,” Barkhane said in the statement.
“In close coordination with the Armed Forces of Niger, the Barkhane force launched several attacks against the column. Around 40 terrorists were killed.”
Niger’s government also issued a statement saying fighters were killed after eight security forces were killed in an attack in southwestern Niger earlier this week.
The drone strikes in Niger come as France reorganizes its military efforts in the wider Sahel region, the vast region south of the Sahara Desert where it was once a colonial power and still maintains strong economic ties.
Niger has become a more reliable ally after military coups toppled the democratically elected presidents of neighboring Mali and Burkina Faso over the past two years.
“Our military commitment in the Sahel-Sahara region to fight terrorism lies with our African allies,” Defense Minister Sebastian Lecornu said on Twitter.
Earlier this year, France announced it was withdrawing all of its forces from Mali after nine years when French forces led an effort to remove armed groups from Timbuktu and other centers in northern Mali.
The decision to withdraw from Mali came amid growing hostility towards the French armed presence and tensions with the country’s leader, who led two coups nine months apart to consolidate his power.
France has said it plans to move its forces from Mali to other countries in the Sahel region, including Niger. Violence is on the rise in the Sahel, including in Niger’s southwest neighbor Burkina Faso, which is battling increased armed-group attacks.
