How Will France’s Withdrawal Impact Counter-Terrorism Efforts in Mali?

Rabat – French President Emmanuel Macron announced on Thursday, June 10, the partial withdrawal from Mali by the French military mission fighting Islamic extremism in the Sahel region.

“We will have to hold a dialogue with our African and European partners. We will keep a counter-terrorism pillar with special forces with several hundred forces,” said Macron, adding that, “there will be a second pillar that will be cooperation, and which we will reinforce.”

France’s Operation Barkhane, which began on August 1, 2014, will now be gradually replaced by another mission that will be more reliant on regional partners. The French president added that full details will be finalized by the end of June.

“We welcomed the presence of Barkhane alongside the Malians for many years,” Malian cultural producer Mamadou Sangare told Africa News, adding that the development will push the region “to create practical solutions in order to be able to face this terrorist threat that is invading the whole Sahel.”

At the moment there are approximately 5,100 French soldiers stationed on the southern edge of the Sahara Desert, while the operation’s headquarters stand in N’Djamena, the capital of Chad.

In late May, Macron suggested that the French withdrawal could be imminent, citing the risk of Mali “moving towards” greater Islamist influence, reported BBC. The comments came amidst rising instability in the country, which has seen two coups d’etat in less than a year.

“Radical Islamism in Mali with our soldiers there? Never,” echoing similar sentiment, Macron told the French newspaper JDD, also noting that “There is this temptation today in Mali. But if it goes in that direction, I will withdraw.”

Sahel’s future

“Public opinion in Mali is mostly against the presence of foreign forces,” stated Africa News, reporting on the French withdrawal. While the French presence is undoubtedly unpopular, Malian security forces have experienced a similar failure in winning over public opinion.

The Human Rights Division of the United Nations’ peacekeeping mission, MINUSMA, has documented 101 summary executions which have been attributed to Malian security forces, reports Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED). Similarly, the French forces and its partners, both local and international, “have recently faced serious allegations of human rights violations against locals,” reports the Institute for Security Forces (ISS).

“These range from rape and sexual assault to deliberate or mistaken killings of civilians during operations,” added the same report.

These revelations suggest that the G5 Sahel approach to counter-terrorism must be radically reassessed and realigned in a way that both promotes regional unity and effectively counteracts radical Islamist insurgence.

One way forward could be better-integrated regional response to terrorism, through fostering ties and coordinating efforts with other regional players who have a better cultural understanding of the issue, and consequently, could provide more effective response.

Morocco’s efforts in curbing terrorism are well documented and well regarded, both by its European neighbours as well as its regional partners across Africa.

In April, Morocco dispatched a high-profile delegation to meet with the Community of Sahel-Saharan States (CENSAD) in Abuja, Nigeria to discuss possible counter-terrorism strategies.

Another possible ally — albeit a bit distant — could be Egypt, whose “holistic approach” has been highlighted by the United Nations.

“It addresses not only the security aspects of the problem, but also its economic, social, cultural, educational and development dimensions, as well as its ideological and intellectual root causes,” notes a 2020 UN report.

Considering that, as ISS reported, “the military’s actions against civilians create the impression that ‘terrorists are on both sides’,” Mali could also take up Egypt’s multilateral approach.

The UN report highlights Egypt’s efforts to ensure that rights of terrorism victims are also protected, “in particular rights to life,” and it underlines Cairo’s “full range of support services and assistance to victims and their families.”

Mali may have to first ensure administrative stability before it moves forward with new developments in its counter-terrorism strategy. Despite that, the fact that many in Mali consider the leaders whom France attacks as the ones who have the country’s interests in mind, suggests that realigning the region’s counter-terrorism response might not be as difficult as it seems.