France Mali

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  French Forces Kill Commander With Al Qaeda Branch in Mali

  France's army confirmed on Tuesday that its special forces had killed a prominent commander with al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), the group's north African branch, during a weekend operation in the northern Mali region of Kidal.

• Pilots of Air Algerie Jet Asked to Turn Back: France

  France said on Monday the pilots of the Air Algerie passenger plane that crashed in Mali, killing all 118 people on board, had asked to turn back, in a new development to a tough probe into the tragedy.

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  Black Boxes from Mali Plane Crash Arrive in France

  France came a step closer Monday to finding out why an Air Algerie plane smashed into the Mali desert last week as black boxes from the crash arrived in Paris.

• French troops enter last Islamist stronghold in Mali

  France called for peace talks between Mali's government and "legitimate representatives" from the north, after French troops took up positions at Kidal, the last city held by Islamist forces.

• French troops control key airport in north Mali

  French forces have taken control of the airport in Kidal, seizing a key position in one of three provincial capitals the Islamist militants took over last year, officials said on Wednesday. One Malian official said French troops even moved into the city, which was the last remaining urban stronghold of the Islamists in Mali.

• In Mali, French-led troops control access to Timbuktu

  French-led troops in Mali on Monday controlled access to the city of Timbuktu after securing the airport of the fabled desert city as part of their push against Islamists, military officials in Paris and Bamako told AFP.

• France launches ground campaign against Mali rebels

  French troops launched their first ground operation against Islamist rebels in Mali on Wednesday in a crucial action to dislodge Al Qaeda-linked fighters who have resisted six days of air strikes.

• French ground troops in Mali combat within 'hours'

  French troops will be in direct combat against Islamist fighters in Mali within "hours", the country's army chief said Wednesday, as France's ground forces pushed north towards rebel-held territory in the six-day old offensive.

• France triple troops in Mali, prepare for assault

  After a punishing bombing campaign failed to stop the southward advance of Al Qaeda-linked fighters, France announced on Tuesday that it is tripling the number of troops deployed to Mali, strongly suggesting that French forces are preparing for a land assault to dislodge the extremists. The move reverses months of rhetoric in which France had said ...

• France strikes new Mali town, boosts troop numbers

  French warplanes hit a town newly-seized by Islamists in Mali as African troops on Tuesday prepared to join the offensive which has sent the jihadists fleeing from their northern strongholds.

• Mali Islamists counter attack, promise France long war

  Al Qaeda-linked Islamist rebels launched a counter-offensive on Monday in central Mali after four days of air strikes by French warplanes on their strongholds in the desert north, promising to drag France into a long and brutal Afghanistan-style ground war.