Battle of Djebok | |||||||
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Part of Northern Mali conflict | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
France Mali | Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
460 French 200 Malians | unknown | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
None | 15-40 killed 8 pick-up trucks destroyed 1 motorcycle destroyed |
The Battle of Djebok took place between an offshoot of Al-Qaeda, the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa against French and Malian armed forces in March 2013 in the area of Djebok, during the Mali war.
The French and Malian troops left Gao on 12 March 2013, heading to Zekouan. They arrived there by the evening and were beginning to search for militants. They found nothing, but when the night came, two pickup trucks came up with several Islamist fighters and attacked the French and Malians. After the two pickups were destroyed, the terrorists abandoned their attack and managed to retreat. After this clash, two other pickup trucks were spotted two kilometers away. The French and Malians attacked them, destroying one, but failed to destroy the other. The next day, the French began to search In Zekouan and discovered an improvised explosive device manufactured with a bomb plane. Shortly afterward, the Jihadists ambushed a group of soldiers. The soldiers manage to push back the Islamists, entering the woods. Then another group of soldiers was attacked. The French and Malian soldiers begun to retreat, but then bombarded the Jihadist's positions in the forest. In the night the fighting stopped and the French and Malians captured the area, but they found no bodies or traces of the Islamists.
On 14 March, north of Imenas, an aircraft located a pickup truck whose passengers were placing an improvised explosive device on the road ahead of the French and Malian column. Fighter planes and three helicopters were sent to the scene. They ambushed six pickup trucks in Torteuli, some filled with explosives. The helicopters opened fire, destroying all of the vehicles. The next day, the soldiers entered Torteuli but were attacked by fighters. After a brief exchange of fire, the Islamists fled into the wilderness.
The next day, French forces searched the in Zekouan again, but did not find anything suspicious. None was killed in the side of the French and Malians during the fighting, but the French estimated that about 15 to 40 Islamists were killed during the battle. [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]
The Battle of Gao was fought between the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) and the Islamist Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MOJWA), along with its ally Ansar Dine, in Gao between 26–28 June 2012. By the 28 June, Gao, Timbuktu and Kidal, the three biggest cities in the disputed secessionist region of Azawad within what is recognised as Malian territory, were under the control of Ansar Dine and its Islamist allies.
The Mali War is an ongoing conflict that started in January 2012 between the northern and southern parts of Mali in Africa. On 16 January 2012, several insurgent groups began fighting a campaign against the Malian government for independence or greater autonomy for northern Mali, which they called Azawad. The National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA), an organization fighting to make this area of Mali an independent homeland for the Tuareg people, had taken control of the region by April 2012.
The Battle of Ifoghas, also known as the Battle of Tigharghâr or the Battle of the Ametettai, took place from 18 February to 31 March 2013, during the Northern Mali conflict. The French army and the Chadian army fought armed Salafist jihadist groups led by Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb and Ansar Dine. After being defeated in January in the Battle of Konna and the Battle of Diabaly, the jihadists abandoned Timbuktu and retreated into the Adrar Tigharghar, a mountain of the Adrar of Ifoghas in northeastern Mali, which has been their sanctuary for years. The French started quickly a pursuit, and they took control of the towns of Tessalit and Aguelhok and begun the operation Panther in the Tigharghar. The first clashes erupt on February 18 and are mainly concentrated in the Ametettai Valley. It is caught between two armored columns, one French to the west and another Chadian to the east, while the paratroopers manage to surprise the jihadists by attacking on foot from the north. The valley is taken on March 3 and jihadists begin to gradually abandon the Tigharghar. Excavation missions and some skirmishes, however, continue to take place the following days. The operations cease on March 31. The battle was a turning point in the war, as with the capture of the Tigharghar, the jihadists lose their main sanctuary in the Sahel as well as most of their military arsenal, taken from the Malian army or Libya.
The Battle of Konna was a battle in the Northern Mali Conflict in the town of Konna in central Mali. Various Islamic fundamentalist rebels fought with the government of Mali, the latter of which was supported by French soldiers participating in Operation Serval. This battle was among the first French engagements in their intervention in the Mali War.
The Battle of Diabaly was fought between government forces of Mali, against groups of Islamists militants such as the AQIM and Ansar Dine. The Islamists held control of Diabaly for no longer than a week until Malian forces with the help French air strikes recaptured the town.
The following is a timeline of major events during the Northern Mali conflict.
The Second Battle of Gao was the recapture of the city of Gao from Islamist MOJWA fighters by Malian/French forces. It took place in January 2013 within the Northern Mali Conflict.
Operation Panther was a French military operation in Mali that was launched in February 2013.
The Battle of Imenas was an armed confrontation between French-Malian forces and the Jihadists terrorist groups, Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa and Al-Mulathameen. The battle was a decisive Franco-Malian victory, as it resulted, according to the French and the Malian governments, in 52 Islamists being killed, with no government forces being killed.
The Third Battle of Gao was fought in the city of Gao on 9–11 February 2013, during the Northern Mali Conflict. It was a raid on the city by rebel MOJWA forces. The raiders were defeated by Malian government forces with the support of troops from France.
The Fourth Battle of Gao was fought in the city of Gao on 20–22 February 2013, during the Northern Mali Conflict. It was an attempt by rebel MOJWA forces to retake the city. The attempt was repelled by Malian government forces with the support of troops from France and Niger.
On March 6, French and Malian forces took control of the Wadi Tin Keraten area, located 100 km east of Gao and northeast of Imenas. When Malian soldiers got near Tin Keraten, they were attacked by Islamists from MOJWA. French ground troops arrived supported by Tiger helicopters and Gazelles along with some warplanes. Four Malian soldiers were wounded during the battle and a French soldier, sergeant Wilfried Pingaud of the 68th Artillery Regiment in Africa, was mortally wounded. He was transported to Gao, where he died of his wounds. The Islamists lost about ten men according to French reports.
The Battle of Timbuktu occurred in Timbuktu, Mali, in March 2013, between Islamist groups and Mali government forces supported by France.
The Second Battle of Timbuktu was a battle during the Mali War between March 30 and April 1, 2013, in which two Islamist attacks targeted the Malian army in Timbuktu. With help from the French, both attacks were prevented from capturing any significant sites in the city.
Operation Barkhane was a counterinsurgency operation that started on 1 August 2014 and formally ended on 9 November 2022. It was led by the French military against Islamist groups in Africa's Sahel region and consisted of a roughly 3,000-strong French force, which was permanently headquartered in N'Djamena, the capital of Chad. The operation was led in co-operation with five countries, all of which are former French colonies that span the Sahel: Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger. Mali was a part of the operation until August 2022. The countries are collectively referred to as the "G5 Sahel". The operation was named after a crescent-shaped dune type that is common in the Sahara desert.
The following lists events that happened during 2013 in the Republic of Mali.
The Battle of Timetrine was a battle between French forces and al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) militants in Timetrine, in Tessalit.
Events in the year 2021 in Mali.
An Islamist insurgency has been ongoing in the Sahel region of West Africa since the 2011 Arab Spring. In particular, the intensive conflict in the three countries of Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso has been referred to as the Sahel War.
On July 10, 2017, French and Malian forces ambushed jihadists from Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin near Djebok, Mali.
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