French military action in Mali

The Strategic Issues & International Relations Forum is a venue to discuss issues pertaining to India's security environment, her strategic outlook on global affairs and as well as the effect of international relations in the Indian Subcontinent. We request members to kindly stay within the mandate of this forum and keep their exchanges of views, on a civilised level, however vehemently any disagreement may be felt. All feedback regarding forum usage may be sent to the moderators using the Feedback Form or by clicking the Report Post Icon in any objectionable post for proper action. Please note that the views expressed by the Members and Moderators on these discussion boards are that of the individuals only and do not reflect the official policy or view of the Bharat-Rakshak.com Website. Copyright Violation is strictly prohibited and may result in revocation of your posting rights - please read the FAQ for full details. Users must also abide by the Forum Guidelines at all times.
ramana
Forum Moderator
Posts: 59773
Joined: 01 Jan 1970 05:30

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by ramana »

Islamist terrorists take Western hostages in Algeria and demand halt to French operations in Mali.
saip
BRF Oldie
Posts: 4231
Joined: 17 Jan 2003 12:31
Location: USA

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by saip »

Now that some Americans have been kidnapped and held hostage in neighboring Algeria, I wonder if US will launch a support operation.
John
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3447
Joined: 03 Feb 2001 12:31

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by John »

shyamd wrote:The AQIM are planning to go to Mauritania (uranium), Niger (uranium), Nigeria (oil) and hence could become a power to reckon with and that whole belt could become a big pain.

Toureg tribes generally don't mix with the black African tribes of the south. The Touregs have a lot of pride as they used to be quite well off
We are looking at clear strategy unfolding before our eyes. Based on recent article it seems like they are planning open another front in Africa and instead of Unkil it was France that intervened. If france doesn't clean them out quickly they will use it boost operations in other countries including Libya where there are constant attacks by Sharia law touting militias on government targets. Iraq is going down the gutter fast and if Assad is topple, islamists will spread to Lebanon-Jordan next.
Surya
BRF Oldie
Posts: 5034
Joined: 05 Mar 2001 12:31

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Surya »

Tuareg pride?

they were hated by everyone for slavery, smuggling and caravan raids -

many claim they still keep slaves. they tried to be clever by half like the turds to our west - by sleeping with the Islamists
sooraj
BRFite
Posts: 1544
Joined: 06 May 2011 15:45

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by sooraj »

France’s Hollande presses PM for more Canadian help in Mali
France’s President, François Hollande, has personally asked Stephen Harper to extend Canada’s contribution of a heavy-lift cargo plane for Mali, and to offer more transport help, testing Mr. Harper’s efforts to set strict limits on Canada’s military assistance.
Maybe India can help with heavylifters and other assistance in return for more concessions in rafale deal. :wink:
shyamd
BRF Oldie
Posts: 7101
Joined: 08 Aug 2006 18:43

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by shyamd »

@HannahAllam: State Dept: Now moving fwd w/lifting of French materiel into #Mali,also our 1st ECOWAS training teams are en route to Africa, there by wkend
Surya
BRF Oldie
Posts: 5034
Joined: 05 Mar 2001 12:31

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Surya »

looking at milphotos - most troopers have minimum body armour - looks like they are not over armoring themselves and losing mobility and sweating in the african heat

some nice pics in page 11 and 12
Victor
BRF Oldie
Posts: 2628
Joined: 24 Apr 2001 11:31

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Victor »

Hostage crisis in Algeria over after army raid. Dead include terrorists and hostages. Some hostages escaped, some rescued, some wounded. Number of casualties still unclear. US and Japanese govts angry that raid took place without consulting them.
USA Today
AFP
Singha
BRF Oldie
Posts: 66601
Joined: 13 Aug 2004 19:42
Location: the grasshopper lies heavy

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Singha »

per CNN the leader of the hostage takers is a afghan war veteran who lost one eye there. his group is called "brotherhood of the masked ones" . he got heavy weapons from libyan war. he is also in smuggling and is known as "Mr.marlboro"
SwamyG
BRF Oldie
Posts: 16267
Joined: 11 Apr 2007 09:22

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by SwamyG »

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wor ... ed-to-ask/

Good info in the article about Mali, and the comments section are worth a read too.
Singha
BRF Oldie
Posts: 66601
Joined: 13 Aug 2004 19:42
Location: the grasshopper lies heavy

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Singha »

seems the algerians went ahead and attacked the gas plant with conventional forces leading to death of a lot of hostages and unknown number missing.

would have thought they might rope in some western HRT units given most hostages were from there and let them do the hard work / take the blame if things went south.
Lalmohan
BRF Oldie
Posts: 13262
Joined: 30 Dec 2005 18:28

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Lalmohan »

algerians have a lot of counter terror experience after the grisly terror war that has been going on for last two decades, but i dont know the specifics of their specialist units...
Singha
BRF Oldie
Posts: 66601
Joined: 13 Aug 2004 19:42
Location: the grasshopper lies heavy

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Singha »

here is the algerian equivalent of our NSG

The Special Intervention Group (French: Groupe d'Intervention Spécial, GIS) is a special forces group created in Algeria in 1987, initially with 300 members.

In addition to the commando-style typical training course of Western forces like the French COS and the Russian Spetnaz they also received training on specialized topics like tactical intervention from the GIGN, RAID, SWAT and Spetnaz Alpha Group.

Since 1992, these forces have existed within the context of violent confrontation between the Algerian government and Islamic militants; major human rights violations against civilians have been alleged against both sides. A resulting arms embargo against Algeria initially prevented the GIS from obtaining equipment such as night-vision goggles typical for such units. However, after the September 11, 2001 attacks, western matériel vendors were allowed to sell equipment to Algeria in the name of the international War on Terrorism, which co-operation had been requested by Algeria since 1992.

---
few training pix here
http://www.militaryphotos.net/forums/sh ... ial-Forces

some of the the hostage takers
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2013/01/ ... 34x354.jpg
Surya
BRF Oldie
Posts: 5034
Joined: 05 Mar 2001 12:31

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Surya »

The West and its media always like to look down on other nations and their CT forces

Its not like the SAS and Delta and GIGN have NOT effed up and lost hostages

we never even hear of it
Singha
BRF Oldie
Posts: 66601
Joined: 13 Aug 2004 19:42
Location: the grasshopper lies heavy

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Singha »

Algeria govt has started second rescue operation now with the dusk per reports.

The gang first attacked a couple of employee buses and then entered the employee township to take hostages. So its kind of like the chechen raids into southern russian towns and matter is very complex.
Singha
BRF Oldie
Posts: 66601
Joined: 13 Aug 2004 19:42
Location: the grasshopper lies heavy

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Singha »

around 750+ people were on the site and most escaped yesterday...ops ongoing...very complex situation in scale and terrain
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/19/world ... ml?hp&_r=0

goods marks to the algerian govt ...

On Thursday, despite requests for communication and pleas to consider the safety of their abducted citizens, the United States, Britain and Japan said they had not been told in advance about the military assault, stirring frustration that the Algerians might have been overly aggressive and caused needless casualties. But the Algerian government, which has a history of violent suppression of Islamist militancy, stood by its decision to deal forcefully with the kidnappers, who were holding Algerians and citizens of nine other countries.

“Those who think we will negotiate with terrorists are delusional,” the communications minister, Mohand Saïd Oublaïd, said in an announcement about the assault on the facility near In Amenas, in eastern Algeria.

“Those who think we will surrender to their blackmail are delusional.”


Citing information from Algerian officials, Mr. Cameron told Parliament that the kidnappers’ attack began on Wednesday when “the terrorists first attacked two buses en route to the Amenas airfield before attacking the residential compound and the gas facility at the installation. It appears to have been a large, well-coordinated and heavily armed assault and it is probable that it had been preplanned.”

The attackers took hostages at both the residential compound and at the gas plant itself, he said.

Earlier reports had suggested that the Algerian military struck when the assailants sought to move with their captives.

Stephen McFaul, 36, a hostage from Northern Ireland, told relatives that the kidnappers put explosives around his neck but that he was able to escape after Algerian forces attacked a convoy of five vehicles in which the abductors were seeking to transport their captives, according to his brother Brian McFaul. Four of the vehicles were hit, but the one in which he Stephen McFaul was traveling crashed and he fled, the brother said.
anmol
BRFite
Posts: 1922
Joined: 05 May 2009 17:39

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by anmol »

Jan 18, 11:16 AM EST


Desert siege: 100 of 132 foreign hostages freed

By KARIM KABIR and PAUL SCHEMM
Associated Press
ALGIERS, Algeria (AP) -- The bloody three-day hostage standoff at a Sahara natural gas plant took a dramatic turn Friday as Algeria's state news service reported that nearly 100 of the 132 foreign workers kidnapped by Islamic militants had been freed.

That number of hostages at the remote desert facility was significantly higher than any previous report, and still meant that the fate of over 30 foreign energy workers was unclear. Yet it could indicate a potential breakthrough in the confrontation that began when the militants seized the plant early Wednesday.

The militants, meanwhile, offered to trade two captive American workers for two terror figures jailed in the United States, according to a statement received by a Mauritanian news site that often reports news from North African extremists.

The Friday report from the government news agency APS, citing a security official, did not mention any casualties in the battles between Algerian forces and the militants. But earlier it had said that 18 militants had been killed, along with six hostages.

It was not clear whether the remaining foreigners were still captive or had died during the Algerian military offensive to free them that began Thursday.

The desert siege erupted Wednesday when the militants attempted to hijack two buses at the plant, were repulsed, and then seized the sprawling refinery.

Since then, Algeria's government has kept a tight grip on information. It wasn't clear how the government arrived at the latest tally of hostages, which was far higher than the 41 foreigners the militants had claimed as hostages.

The militants had seized hundreds of workers from 10 nations at Algeria's remote Ain Amenas natural gas plant. The overwhelming majority were Algerian and were freed almost immediately.

Algerian forces retaliated Thursday by storming the plant in an attempted rescue operation that left leaders around the world expressing strong concerns about the hostages' safety.

Militants claimed 35 hostages died on Thursday when Algerian military helicopters opened fire as the Islamists transported the hostages around the gas plant.

On Friday, trapped in the main refinery area, the militants offered to trade two American hostages for two prominent terror figures jailed in the United States. Those the militants sought included Omar Abdel Rahman, the blind sheikh who was convicted of plotting to blow up New York City landmarks and considered the spiritual leader of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, and Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani scientist convicted of shooting at two U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan.

But U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said there would be "no place to hide" for anyone who looks to attack the United States.

"Terrorists should be on notice that they will find no sanctuary, no refuge, not in Algeria, not in North Africa, not anywhere," Panetta said Friday.

Workers kidnapped by the militants came from around the world - Americans, Britons, French, Norwegians, Romanians, Malaysians, Japanese, Algerians.

World leaders have expressed strong concerns in the past few days about how Algeria was handing the situation and its apparent reluctance to communicate.

Terrorized hostages from Ireland and Norway trickled out of the Ain Amenas plant, 800 miles (1,300 kilometers) south of Algiers, the capital. BP, which jointly operates the plant, said it had begun to evacuate employees from Algeria.

"This is a large and complex site and they are still pursuing terrorists and possibly some of the hostages," British Prime Minister David Cameron said Friday in London.

He told British lawmakers the situation remained fluid and dangerous, saying "part of the threat has been eliminated in one part of the site, a threat still remains in another part."

--

Schemm reported from Rabat, Morocco. Associated Press writers Lolita Baldor in Washington, Lori Hinnant in Paris, and Cassandra Vinograd in London contributed to this report.
ramana
Forum Moderator
Posts: 59773
Joined: 01 Jan 1970 05:30

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by ramana »

Nightwatch report:

Link: NW 17 Jan 2013
Algeria: The state news agency reported earlier during this Watch that the military operation to free hostages at a desert gas plant is over. The agency reported Algerian forces rescued 600 Algerians and an unknown number of foreigners. News services reported up to 34 dead hostages, but no outlet has reported who killed them.

Comment: The Algerians executed the operation without outside coordination, which has generated considerable back pressure. As yet the government has provided no details of its execution or accounted for the dead and wounded. News service accounts are inconsistent, when they are not contradictory.

To recap the key points of a Feedback note from a Brilliant and extremely well-informed Reader, this was a very odd attack. The location is outside the normal operating areas of al Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM). The target also was unusual. Most of the time the terrorists attack gendarmerie barracks and outposts along the coast east of Algiers.

Finally, the group is jihadist, but it splintered from AQIM. Its leader, Belmokhtar, fought in Afghanistan, but is known locally as a smuggler, of cigarettes. His group has never been reported to harbor suicidal tendencies. His men are not suicide bombers.

No news service has reported destruction of the plant, interruption of its production or an attempt by the attackers to flee with some hostages so as to negotiate ransoms. Initial reports indicated there were 20 attackers. The state news agency reported variously 11 or 14 of them were killed, making this a high cost operation, even for terrorist.

The information in the public domain suggests this operation and its tactics hold no precedent of victory for others to follow. Moreover, the information raises suspicions that Belmokhtar tried to exploit the crisis in Mali for his own purposes, not necessarily as an act of solidarity with the terrorists in Mali.

Algeria's swift and harsh reaction is consistent with Algerian tactics used when they defeated the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) rebellion between 1991 and 2002.

Mali: The fighting continues without major breakthroughs. Contrary to earlier reports, government and French forces have not captured Diabaly. Residents reported the Islamists have mingled among the population, taking over homes and using the occupants in effect as human shields.

Troop contingents from Nigeria and Togo began to arrive along with more French forces.

The most ominous development on 17 January was the sighting of Islamists near the town of Banamba, which has no garrison and is located about 90 miles from Bamako. The Islamists did not enter the town. The government later sent a contingent of 100 Malian soldiers to defend Banamba, or act as a trip wire for an attack.

Image

Comment: The Islamists might have been performing reconnaissance. They also probably were searching for fuel and supplies.

Banamba is the closest they have come to Bamako. The map suggests they might be in a position to flank pro-government forces in a wide arc to the west in order to attack the capital.

Almost a week into the French intervention, the Islamists seem to know the terrain well and retain the initiative on the ground.

Two key questions are how much petrol and other supplies have the terrorists captured and how much is left in areas beyond government control?
Do we want to move this to the Strat Forum as there seems to be a lot of political overtones and less on arms and tactics?
NRao
BRF Oldie
Posts: 19226
Joined: 01 Jan 1970 05:30
Location: Illini Nation

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by NRao »

Do we want to move this to the Strat Forum as there seems to be a lot of political overtones and less on arms and tactics?
Good idea. Good news about arms and tactics will take days, if not months to come out. Politics is more in real-time.
Singha
BRF Oldie
Posts: 66601
Joined: 13 Aug 2004 19:42
Location: the grasshopper lies heavy

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Singha »

CNN reports Konna back in govt hands.

milphotos forum has pix of crates of Eryx missiles unloaded and road blocking team carrying either the eryx or milan deployed near a lake.
Singha
BRF Oldie
Posts: 66601
Joined: 13 Aug 2004 19:42
Location: the grasshopper lies heavy

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Singha »

nice summary of french deployments here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLkc71IaTcs
Surya
BRF Oldie
Posts: 5034
Joined: 05 Mar 2001 12:31

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Surya »

looks like very few hi tech weapons - the french wisely or perhaps have learnt from Libya are using 250 kg bombs and ATMs
Victor
BRF Oldie
Posts: 2628
Joined: 24 Apr 2001 11:31

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Victor »

Looks like they are bringing the Caesar howitzer. This would be deadly when used with air-burst rounds which can shred jihadi columns from 30kms away.
Singha
BRF Oldie
Posts: 66601
Joined: 13 Aug 2004 19:42
Location: the grasshopper lies heavy

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Singha »

issue is going to be bringing the jihadis to battle. they have quickly learnt lessons that if they concentrate , drones and planes can pick them apart and ground force with light armour and ATGMs can defeat them..so they have melted away and become formless, or split into small bands that are impossible to track in the sahara. borders are straight lines and mere lines in the sand there, movement is possible between 6 countries in the region with a good pickup truck and guide.

the trade routes are via camels or rugged old trucks like these...the french cannot stop and check every truck like this for weapons without huge police support from the locals
http://www.google.co.in/url?source=imgl ... WQljsCnuag
Victor
BRF Oldie
Posts: 2628
Joined: 24 Apr 2001 11:31

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Victor »

Somebody, possibly France, is using Antonov Airlines An-124 transports. These are in Mali.
Antonov Airlines-Worldwide Delivery of Large-Size and Extra-Heavy Cargoes
Image
Image
Singha
BRF Oldie
Posts: 66601
Joined: 13 Aug 2004 19:42
Location: the grasshopper lies heavy

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Singha »

they are being used to airlift the wheeled vehicles and also heavy 20ft pallets. videos are there of pallets being picked up using a overhead rail system.
Victor
BRF Oldie
Posts: 2628
Joined: 24 Apr 2001 11:31

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Victor »

After Konna, it seems Diabaly may have been recaptured too today. As expected, the jihadis could not hide their trucks in the town and these have been destroyed or abandoned. If they have been denied mobility, they have lost and are finished. There is no way they can survive and fight on foot in the desert. The ECOWAS troops have begun to arrive too and their mandate is to mop up and secure the north. The brave soldiers of Islam will very likely take out their frustrations on the unarmed civilian population as usual and the resulting refugee crisis might become a bigger problem than the military clean up operations.
Singha
BRF Oldie
Posts: 66601
Joined: 13 Aug 2004 19:42
Location: the grasshopper lies heavy

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Singha »

these volga dnepr aviation AN124 seem to be a permanent fixture whenever these bulky stuff need lifting around.
though NATO inter departmental billing will presumably take care of using usaf C17 and C5 , these likely work out cheaper.

might be a good idea to see if we can lay in some when the production restarts and use them for moving bulky cargo like missile units, construction machinery and folded radars apart from pallets.
see from 2:50 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61thuY46Qj8
Rampy
BRFite
Posts: 317
Joined: 25 Mar 2003 12:31

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Rampy »

Victor wrote:Looks like they are bringing the Caesar howitzer. This would be deadly when used with air-burst rounds which can shred jihadi columns from 30kms away.
Did not get the details from Video but are Rafael using three external fuel tanks or are they bombs?Where are they operating from ?
Singha
BRF Oldie
Posts: 66601
Joined: 13 Aug 2004 19:42
Location: the grasshopper lies heavy

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Singha »

Raffy as carrying 2-4 bombs and 3 fuel tanks. Europe all of them can barely scrape 20 tankers on a good day so loiter time on own fuel is at premium here to keep costs down as khan is not interested yet in sending its vital tanker assets from air national guard and af reserve..around 150 airframes.

French have atleast one permanent airbase in chad.

Video i posted show atleast one kc135 nato tanker landing in africa.
rohitvats
BR Mainsite Crew
Posts: 7830
Joined: 08 Sep 2005 18:24
Location: Jatland

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by rohitvats »

The developments in Mali should wake up people and help them understand that tackling Islamic militancy is a long term issue - the use of military means is only one aspect of it.Under no circumstance should an organization like Ansar Dine be allowed to take hold of countries - no matter how decrepit they be.

It is people who are the real cannon fodder in this game... benign Islamic societies were Wahhabi elements have not taken root need to be guarded - even if these benign Islamic societies have not love lost for the Kafir. Over a period of time, societies and countries taken over by these Wahhabi yahoos will morph into 'bastions of Islam' and spread like cancer into their surroundings.

To me, such Islamic societies represent the biggest danger to mankind and progression of human race - these are like undead in Hollywood movies who will simply keep on coming at you...they will give no quarter and so should we. We need to be ready to put boots on the ground and brace of body bags. Technology and stuff is all right...but these are no substitutes for men who can hunt these vermin down like they should be. If western world does not do this, sooner than later 9/11 will become just another day.
anand_sankar
BRFite
Posts: 162
Joined: 09 Jan 2009 19:24

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by anand_sankar »

@rohitvats

True that!

Have you seen he TV series Homeland? The terrorist Abu Nazir in it says they are prepared for a century or more of violence.

For a brief little while after 9/11, I thought America would use its might to stamp this out. Then Iraq happened and Afghanistan unravelled. Both countries will be basket cases, even Iraq with all its oil will always be unstable. Syria will join them soon.

The real danger now is losing northern Africa too. It creates a huge swathe of the world which can be a breeding ground to spread terror in both directions -- east and west.
ramana
Forum Moderator
Posts: 59773
Joined: 01 Jan 1970 05:30

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by ramana »

Moved to Strat forum.
NRao
BRF Oldie
Posts: 19226
Joined: 01 Jan 1970 05:30
Location: Illini Nation

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by NRao »

rohitvats wrote:The developments in Mali should wake up people and help them understand that tackling Islamic militancy is a long term issue - the use of military means is only one aspect of it.Under no circumstance should an organization like Ansar Dine be allowed to take hold of countries - no matter how decrepit they be.
.................................
To me, such Islamic societies represent the biggest danger to mankind and progression of human race - these are like undead in Hollywood movies who will simply keep on coming at you...they will give no quarter and so should we. We need to be ready to put boots on the ground and brace of body bags. Technology and stuff is all right...but these are no substitutes for men who can hunt these vermin down like they should be. If western world does not do this, sooner than later 9/11 will become just another day.
There is nothing called a PC war, which is what the Western world has been peddling. Every one of us who is here is because our ancestors fought a war (and won), surrendered (and lost) or ran away to another land (another form of surrender) where the risks were lower. History is replete with examples of slaughter, sprinkled with some humanitarian and scholarly events.

Cannot have collateral damage, should not cross IB, de-escalate even when the enemy is barbaric, yada, yada, yada.
Aditya G
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3565
Joined: 19 Feb 2002 12:31
Contact:

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Aditya G »

anand_sankar wrote:...Have you seen he TV series Homeland? The terrorist Abu Nazir in it says they are prepared for a century or more of violence.

For a brief little while after 9/11, I thought America would use its might to stamp this out. Then Iraq happened and Afghanistan unravelled. Both countries will be basket cases, even Iraq with all its oil will always be unstable. Syria will join them soon.

The real danger now is losing northern Africa too. It creates a huge swathe of the world which can be a breeding ground to spread terror in both directions -- east and west.
Sir, are you making this assessment on basis of a TV soap? :roll:

BTW, in case you havent realized India has been fighting this terrorism right from 1947 ... in my own view we have never been stronger since the 60+ years of fighting.
Prem
BRF Oldie
Posts: 21233
Joined: 01 Jul 1999 11:31
Location: Weighing and Waiting 8T Yconomy

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Prem »

Aditya G wrote:
anand_sankar wrote:...BTW, in case you havent realized India has been fighting this terrorism right from 1947 ... in my own view we have never been stronger since the 60+ years of fighting.
You mean from 947.
Samudragupta
BRFite
Posts: 625
Joined: 12 Nov 2010 23:49
Location: Some place in the sphere

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Samudragupta »

rohitvats wrote:The developments in Mali should wake up people and help them understand that tackling Islamic militancy is a long term issue - the use of military means is only one aspect of it.Under no circumstance should an organization like Ansar Dine be allowed to take hold of countries - no matter how decrepit they be.

It is people who are the real cannon fodder in this game... benign Islamic societies were Wahhabi elements have not taken root need to be guarded - even if these benign Islamic societies have not love lost for the Kafir. Over a period of time, societies and countries taken over by these Wahhabi yahoos will morph into 'bastions of Islam' and spread like cancer into their surroundings.

To me, such Islamic societies represent the biggest danger to mankind and progression of human race - these are like undead in Hollywood movies who will simply keep on coming at you...they will give no quarter and so should we. We need to be ready to put boots on the ground and brace of body bags. Technology and stuff is all right...but these are no substitutes for men who can hunt these vermin down like they should be. If western world does not do this, sooner than later 9/11 will become just another day.
In as much this war cannot be fought in a selective manner as the opponent just not follows any rules of war and hence u only have to carry on unrestricted warfare where there is only one rule "there is no rule"....Indian society has not reached to that coherence that will allow its armies to carry out this mode of warfare....more tribalism in the Islamic societies is a welcome development without any technological and productive base....
shyamd
BRF Oldie
Posts: 7101
Joined: 08 Aug 2006 18:43

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by shyamd »

Apparently the French are going in for the long haul and preparing for it. About 20 British personnel currently in mali. Drones on standby.
Singha
BRF Oldie
Posts: 66601
Joined: 13 Aug 2004 19:42
Location: the grasshopper lies heavy

Re: French military action in Mali

Post by Singha »

Other reports said the radical Islamists were leaving areas under their control in the extreme north for the mountainous region of Kidal, 1,500 kilometres from Bamako and near the border with Algeria.
Kidal was the first town seized by an amalgam of Al-Qaeda linked militants and Tuareg separatist groups in March last year. The two sides then had a falling out and the Islamists have since gained the upper hand in the vast desert north.
"The jihadists are increasingly leaving other areas to go towards Kidal which is a hilly region," another Malian security official said.
A municipal official from the town of Douentza, about 800 kilometres from the capital, backed up the claim, saying: "They are fleeing. All indications show that they are seeking refuge in Kidal, which is difficult to access."
Post Reply