Africa-Press. The Malian army announced that air forces of the Alliance of Sahel States carried out a series of precision air operations in late January, resulting in the killing of dozens of militants affiliated with the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara across several areas of the Ménaka region in northeastern Mali.
According to a statement from the General Staff, the first strike was conducted on 31 January in the Akabar area, south of Ménaka near the border with Niger. It targeted a group of militants travelling on motorcycles, killing around twenty of them and destroying vehicles used to transport logistical equipment. The statement added that other groups detected in the same area were also targeted and neutralised, with their equipment destroyed.
The Alliance’s air forces also said they pursued militants who had survived earlier strikes carried out by Malian armed forces on 29 January north of Ménaka. Those fighters, suffering from shortages of fuel and ammunition, had gathered in an area under aerial surveillance before being struck.
Senior commander killed
The Malian army said field verification confirmed the death of a senior militant leader, Abu al-Ghabbas Ichmali, who was wanted by the authorities, during an airstrike carried out on 29 January in the Inatabakt area north of Ménaka. Authorities said Ichmali was involved in serious abuses against civilians in the region.
The General Staff concluded by stressing that aerial reconnaissance and surveillance operations will continue across the Alliance of Sahel States to eliminate armed groups threatening the region’s security and stability.
