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French forces have killed dozens of fighters in Burkina Faso linked to lethal assaults this week in neighbouring Benin whose victims included a Frenchman, the military stated.
The French-led Barkhane pressure within the Sahel area “engaged its air intelligence capacities to find the armed group” accountable for the assaults, earlier than finishing up air assaults that killed 40 fighters, the military’s normal command stated on Saturday.
The Frenchman had been amongst 9 individuals killed this week in two assaults on park rangers within the W Nationwide Park, a wildlife reserve in Benin’s distant north bordering troubled Niger and Burkina Faso.
Two roadside bombs killed 5 park rangers, one park official, one soldier and a French coach on Tuesday, in keeping with a Beninese authorities toll.
Two days later, one other park official was killed in an explosion.
France stated on Thursday it had opened an investigation as a 50-year-old citizen was amongst these killed in a “terrorist assault” within the park.
African Parks, the organisation operating the reserve, stated the Frenchman had been a “chief legislation enforcement teacher” there.
Benin had lengthy been one of many extra secure international locations in West Africa, the place fighters from al-Qaeda and ISIL (ISIS) threaten Sahel international locations, nevertheless it has skilled a number of latest assaults.
Felony smuggling gangs additionally function alongside its frontier.
In January, two Beninese troopers had been killed when their car hit an improvised explosive within the northern Atakora area.
Supply: Al Jazeera/AP
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