Top Militant Leader Killed in Mali Offensive

Mali Defence Minister Florence Parly has said in a statement, following the death of  Bah ag Moussa in manoeuvres by French troops, that "the senior leader of the North African wing Al Qaeda, is considered responsible for several attacks against Mali and international forces". A U.S. report has said that militant groups have increased the volume and lethality of their attacks in West Africa, undermining state authority and threatening lives and livelihoods. It added that the attacks almost doubled from around 2,700 in 2017 to nearly 5,000, and still counting, in 2020. In early October, Barkhane forces, helped by Mali and the US, killed Ali Maychou, whom Parly described as "the second most-wanted militant in the Sahel, including by the Americans".