French Forces Kill Leader Of Al-Qaeda In Islamic Maghreb

French forces have killed the leader of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, Algerian Abdelmalek Droukdel, in northern Mali, France’s defence minister said.

Droukdel was killed on Thursday near the Algerian border, where the group has bases from which it has carried out attacks and abductions of Westerners in the sub-Saharan Sahel zone, Defence Minister Florence Parly said Friday.

“Many close associates” of Droukdel -- who commanded several affiliate jihadist groups across the lawless region -- were also “neutralised”, she added.