The French forces killed the suspect linked to terror organization of Al Qaeda in early October.
Rabat – French Minister of Armed Forces Florence Parly announced on November 5 that French forces killed a Moroccan terror fighter in Mali in early October.
Parly told the AFP that French troops killed Abdou Abdel Rahman, known as Al Maychou, on the night of October 8-9. The operation took place in coordination with Malian and American forces.
She added that the terror fighter was the “second most wanted terrorist in the Sahel.”
Al Maychou joined Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) in 2012.
The French official said that Al Maychou is the second of two top targets killed this year. Security services also killed number one target Algerian Djamel Okacha, known as Abu El Hamame, in February.
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It is “necessary to continue this work of counterterrorism,” the French official warned.
The statement followed a fatal terror attack on a military post in northern Mali.
The attack killed at least 53 soldiers and one civilian.
ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack.
The Sahel remains one of the territories that still pose a dangerous threat to the region due to the scourge of terrorism.
Morocco’s top security chiefs have long warned that security cooperation is needed to face terror challenges in the region.
Last year during several interviews, the head of Morocco’s Central Bureau of Judicial Investigation (BCIJ), Abdelhak El Khiame, expressed his deep concerns over the security threat in Sahel, where terror groups continue to jeopardize the stability of the region.
El Khiame described the Sahel as “a fertile ground for terrorism.”
He recalled Morocco’s “efficient” policy, as well as its security system aimed at confronting all dangers related to terrorism and drug trafficking.
