Last week, Niger’s President Mohamed Bazoum said his country needed technological assistance from its European partners to fight jihadis. He complained of swaths of territory in Mali and Niger being taken over by the so-called “Islamic State” (IS) — known also as ISIS — and its affiliates.
Bazoum’s comments came as French President Emmanuel Macron announced France would start closing military bases in northern Mali by the end of 2021, including the 5,100-member Barkhane force.
“We are going to reorganize ourselves in line with this need to stop this spread to the south,” Macron told reporters.
