the end of the operations of the French Saber force in the country

After Mali, it is the turn of the French forces in Burkina Faso to pack up. The Saber mission, which had been established in the country for almost 15 years, is officially over. The decision of the Burkinabe general staff comes three weeks after the denunciation by the transitional government of the defense agreements linking the two countries, in an increasingly tense security context.

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This departure had been demanded for several months by the Burkinabe authorities. The end of operations of the Saber mission was a request from Captain Ibrahim Traoré, who came to power after a coup in October 2022. On January 18, the government gave the French forces a month to leave the country. On Saturday, a flag drop on the French camp of Bila Zagré in Kamboinsin marked the end of French operations in Burkina Faso.

As a reminder, the mission began in 2009, after a suicide attack in front of the French Embassy in neighboring Mauritania. The aim was to establish a base for the anti-jihadist struggle in the Sahel. Saber’s forces numbered up to 400 men who carried out targeted actions, but also trained Burkinabe special forces. In recent years, however, armed terrorist groups have gained ground, to the point of now controlling 40% of Burkinabe territory, and discontent has intensified in the country against the French presence. In January, France recalled its ambassador at the request of the Burkinabe authorities. The day after the announcement of the departure of the French special forces, several thousand people had demonstrated in Ouagadougou in support of the junta in power and “the sovereignty of the country”.

Staff redeployed to Africa?

The French mission is therefore officially over and the members of the force have already begun to pack up. According to the Burkinabe army, the departure of the remaining equipment will be finalized by a team of logisticians and according to a schedule defined in agreement with the general staff of the armies. For security reasons, the French army remains very discreet for the moment on the next destination of the soldiers. The French general staff affirms that there is no urgency or official date for the redeployment of these soldiers. “We will take care of it in 2023”, they say. Officially, a large part of the forces will return to France. According to several sources, part of the workforce could also be redeployed to Niger as well as to Côte d’Ivoire.

For its part, Burkina Faso continues to face repeated attacks and is seeking new partners for its fight against terrorism. Prime Minister Apollinaire Kyélem de Tambéla had discreetly visited Russia in December 2022 and according to a French diplomatic source, there is no doubt that the junta and the Wagner mercenary group will “turn around”.