France Fights Islamist Rebel Movement in Mali

January 14, 2013 - 5:55am
In January 2013, French forces fought Islamist insurgents in Mali who are seeking to take over larger portions of the West African country.
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In January 2013, French forces fought Islamist insurgents in Mali who are seeking to take over larger portions of the West African country.

Arming for the Fight

French forces in January 2013 began pushing back against Islamist insurgents in Mali who are seeking to take over larger portions of the West African country and former French colony. This photo from the French Military Communications Audiovisual office shows a Rafale jet fighter getting armed at the Saint Dizier airbase in central France before being deployed.




See a Google map of Mali in Western Africa. Photo: Laure-Anne Maucorps/ECPAD/Reuters

French Jet

A Rafale jet lands in Ndjamena, Chad, before being deployed to Mali. French forces first focused on regaining control of Konna in central Mali from rebels in order to prevent a possible rebel attack on Bamako, the capital. Photo: Nicolas-Nelson Richard/ECPAD/Reuters

Newspaper Headlines

Malian people read newspapers' front pages describing France's military intervention in Mali's capital Bamako on Jan. 14. Photo: Eric Feferberg/AFP/Getty Images

Support for Intervention

Yacouba Konate, 56, wears a French flag to show his support for the French military intervention in the capital Bamako. France has sent hundreds of troops into the capital and carried out more air raids on Jan. 14 in the desert area seized last year by an al-Qaida-linked rebel group allied with Mali-based militant groups. Photo: Joe Penney/Reuters

Protesting France

A British Islamist protests outside the French Embassy in London on Jan. 12 during the second day that French aircraft pounded Islamist fighters in Mali. Photo: Suzanne Plunkett/Reuters

Malian Refugees

Malian refugee children attend class on Dec. 7 under a tent in the Goudebou refugee camp in Burkina Faso, bordering Mali. The United Nations says more than 200,000 Malians have fled to neighboring countries to escape the fighting. Photo: Ahmed Ouoba/AFP/Getty Images

Police Guard Capital

Malian police patrol in the capital Bamako, which is under threat of rebel advancement. The Malian army confirmed that rebels had progressed toward the south.




View more coverage on our World page. Photo: Issouf Sanogo/AFP/Getty Images

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