A rare document from the magazine “1:15 p.m. on Saturday” (Twitter, #1:15 p.m.), signed Dorothée Olliéric, Vincent Fichman, Florian Le Moal and Nicolas Berthelot, on the French army in Mali at a time when France and its European partners have formalized their military withdrawal from the country. Barkhane, and before that Serval, had more than 5,000 soldiers, including 2 000 deployed in the so-called “three borders” region : Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger.
Soldiers on the front line against jihadists for over nine years, of whom 53 have died in combat. Philibert, Christophe and Amélie were followed for six months, from their military training until their departure for Mali. Their mission lasted four months in the field, during which they experienced moments of fatigue, tensions related to the risk of attack, but also moments of comfort when they could contact their loved ones for brief phone calls…
Suicide attacks, “improvised explosive devices”, artisanal mines…
The military preparation is over, the day of departure is approaching for Philibert, Christophe and Amélie. How will their families live this long absence? A husband who leaves, a mother who leaves her two sons to their grandmother, a newlywed who separates from his wife for four months… And this, while shortly before, five French soldiers had just been killed in Mali.
When Philibert, Christophe and Amélie signed to go to this region, they did not know that it would be their last OPEX (external operation) in Mali. The gradual disengagement of French forces in the Sahel had not yet been announced by the French head of state. The convoy that they are accompanying and securing will cover more than 500 kilometres. A high-risk mission…
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