A massive car bomb attack reportedly targeted France’s Barkhane force in the central Malian town of Gossi on Monday injuring several soldiers.
The attack occurred in the Kaigourou neighbourhood of Gossi in central Mali injuring several soldiers operating under France’s Operation Barkhane in Sahel, according to local sources.
According to witnesses, several military helicopters could be seen heading to the area after the massive explosion to evacuate the wounded.
The attack came days after French President Emmanuel Macron announced a reduction of France’s military operations in Africa’s Sahel region, saying France’s existing Barkhane force needs “profound transformation”.
Macron is calling for a new international force for the region.
France currently has 5,100 troops in the arid and volatile Sahel region, which stretches across Africa under the Sahara desert encompassing Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger.
The Sahel is seen by many Western politicians and experts as a major risk because of the growing strength of jihadist groups there, as well as its role as a crossroads for arms and people-smuggling.
The attack came days after French forces in Mali captured a senior commander of the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (EIGS) group.
Mali has been in turmoil since a 2012 uprising prompted mutinous soldiers to overthrow the country’s president of a decade.
The power vacuum that was created ultimately led to an Islamic insurgency and a French-led war that ousted the jihadists from power in 2013.
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