France's Macron pays respects to soldiers killed in Mali, says battle goes on

President Emmanuel Macron paid tribute on Monday to 13 French soldiers killed in...

PARIS - President Emmanuel Macron paid tribute on Monday to 13 French soldiers killed in Mali last week and vowed no respite in the fight against Islamist militants in the region.

“Thirteen of our bravest soldiers... have died for France and for the protection of the people of the Sahel, for the security of their compatriots and the freedom of the world and us all,” Macron said at a ceremony at the Hotel des Invalides also attended by Mali’s president.Soldiers stood by the 13 flag-draped coffins holding pictures of the fallen men, who were from four regiments.

The deaths highlight the human cost to France of leading a six-year counter-insurgency campaign in West Africa. It has been forced to reassess its strategy, though there is no immediate prospect of withdrawing its 4,500 troops from the region. Fifty-eight percent of French people back their country’s military mission in the Sahel, an IFOP poll for L’Expansion showed on Monday.However, security has progressively worsened. Militants with links to al Qaeda and Islamic State have strengthened their foothold, making large swathes of territory ungovernable and stoking ethnic violence, especially in Mali and Burkina Faso.Slideshow

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