After weeks of uncertainty, French President Emmanuel Macron announced the withdrawal of his country’s forces from Niger on September 24. This follows the withdrawal of France’s military presence in Mali and Burkina Faso in the past two years. At the regional level, Paris now has diplomatic and military relations with Mauritania and Chad, just two out of the five member states of the G5 Sahel – an organisation that France helped to create in 2014 and which was meant to support regional stability.
For French officers, the disengagement from Niger will be a painful addition to the termination last year of Operation Barkhane, which had covered the Sahel region since 2014. The government of Mr Macron will be forced to fundamentally rethink France's approach in Africa. Meanwhile, the retreat leaves a security vacuum that will amplify instability in the Sahel, something already evidenced by a steady rise in terrorist attacks over the past few months.
For the past decade, France’s strategy for the Sahel built on its initial 2013 success in rescuing the government of Mali from an offensive being carried out by Islamist factions from the north of the country. Quickly though, the government of Francois Hollande, France’s president at the time, made several mistakes.
First, Operation Barkhane had an impossible mission. It relied on 3,000 soldiers to secure a region, the Sahel, which is as big as continental Europe. Whereas the initial operation in Mali had a concrete and limited objective – preventing a terrorist takeover of the capital, Bamako – Barkhane had no clear endgame. Paris believed that strengthening the capabilities of the five Sahel nations’ armed forces would avoid the need for an endless military commitment, with Barkhane eventually leading to a transfer of responsibilities.
Initially, that French-African partnership seemed to be promising and some tactical successes in joint operations gave credence to the gamble. However, the training of under-resourced Sahelian forces proved difficult. The rise in terrorist attacks across the region, and particularly in the border area between Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger put tremendous pressure on African soldiers, whose frustration kept growing.
Increasingly, France looked like an obvious scapegoat. It supported civilian governments deemed by the soldiers to be incompetent and got caught in the middle of domestic power struggles. Soon, officers and political opponents in Bamako, Ouagadougou and Niamey accused the French government of having colonialist designs.
This could have been mitigated if France had rallied more western partners behind its intervention. The US provided modest logistical support to the French operation and Paris actively lobbied the EU to share the burden in the Sahel. Overall, however, the response was underwhelming. A small EU task force, Takuba, provided security assistance to Malian forces between 2020 and 2022 but it failed to truly "Europeanise" Operation Barkhane. For many EU member states, the worsening of the security situation in Eastern Europe after the Russian annexation of Crimea in 2014 became a much bigger priority than the Sahel’s crises.
Operation Barkhane had an impossible mission. It relied on 3,000 soldiers to secure a region, the Sahel, which is as big as continental Europe
But the Europeans' reluctance to support France in the Sahel was also the result of French strategic confusion. After Mr Macron became President in 2017, he announced his desire to reduce France’s military footprint in the region. In January 2020, he publicly demanded that African leaders stop cultivating anti-French sentiments among the local population and increase their share of carrying the security burden. But then he announced an increase of French troops to reach the threshold of 5,000 soldiers.
France's political treatment of its local partners also proved to be inconsistent. On the one hand, the French government denounced the military coups in Mali between 2020 and 2021, Burkina Faso in 2022 and Niger this year. It also emphasised its support for democracy. But on the other hand, Mr Macron accommodated himself to the takeover by Mahamat Deby of Chad in 2021 after the killing of his father – and long-time ally of France – Idriss Deby. This double standard had a disastrous impact: it weakened French credibility among local public opinion and thwarted its ability to maintain a channel of communication with the juntas in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger. In the latter case, it is telling that French troops were forced to leave but the US military mission in Niamey is so far staying.
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Understanding all the causes and consequences of those mistakes will take time for French officials who want to believe that the nearly 60 French soldiers who lost their lives while on duty in the Sahel did not die in vain. A critical review of Operation Barkhane should also lead to a broader revision of French approach in Africa. Mr Macron has repeatedly affirmed that the "Francafrique" – an expression depicting the close ties between the French government, business circles and authoritarian African regimes – is over. However, the decade that followed the French operation in Mali was marked by a military-centric policy in Africa. The country embarked on its own little "war on terror" and neglected the importance of other domains of co-operation, such as trade and development. Hopefully, Mr Macron’s government will recalibrate this focus.
Sadly, for the population of the Sahel, the French military retreat is unlikely to solve any of the local issues. First, the juntas in the three countries have yet to demonstrate any intention of relinquishing power. They are unlikely to address the social and economic issues that have undermined the development of those countries for many years. Finally, since the military coups in Mali and Burkina Faso, both countries have proved incapable of turning the tide against terrorist groups. Similarly in Niger, the junta confirmed on October 3 that 29 soldiers died in an attack near the border with Mali.
Altogether, the combination of military rulers clinging to power and unabated terrorist attacks do not bode well for the future of the Sahel. It will exacerbate the humanitarian crisis and the flow of refugees fleeing the region. France will not have the answer to that new situation but the international community, starting with the Economic Community of West African States and the UN, should step up.
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MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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if you go
The flights
Emirates have direct flights from Dubai to Glasgow from Dh3,115. Alternatively, if you want to see a bit of Edinburgh first, then you can fly there direct with Etihad from Abu Dhabi.
The hotel
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Located in the heart of Mackintosh's Glasgow, the Dakota Deluxe is perhaps the most refined hotel anywhere in the city. Doubles from Dh850
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Events and tours
There are various Mackintosh specific events throughout 2018 – for more details and to see a map of his surviving designs see glasgowmackintosh.com
For walking tours focussing on the Glasgow Style, see the website of the Glasgow School of Art.
More information
For ideas on planning a trip to Scotland, visit www.visitscotland.com
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HOW TO WATCH
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How to vote
Canadians living in the UAE can register to vote online and be added to the International Register of Electors.
They'll then be sent a special ballot voting kit by mail either to their address, the Consulate General of Canada to the UAE in Dubai or The Embassy of Canada in Abu Dhabi
Registered voters mark the ballot with their choice and must send it back by 6pm Eastern time on October 21 (2am next Friday)
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
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Match info
What: Fifa Club World Cup play-off
Who: Al Ain v Team Wellington
Where: Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain
When: Wednesday, kick off 7.30pm
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, last-16 second leg
Paris Saint-Germain (1) v Borussia Dortmund (2)
Kick-off: Midnight, Thursday, March 12
Stadium: Parc des Princes
Live: On beIN Sports HD
The five pillars of Islam
THE BIO: Martin Van Almsick
Hometown: Cologne, Germany
Family: Wife Hanan Ahmed and their three children, Marrah (23), Tibijan (19), Amon (13)
Favourite dessert: Umm Ali with dark camel milk chocolate flakes
Favourite hobby: Football
Breakfast routine: a tall glass of camel milk
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
Virtual banks explained
What is a virtual bank?
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority defines it as a bank that delivers services through the internet or other electronic channels instead of physical branches. That means not only facilitating payments but accepting deposits and making loans, just like traditional ones. Other terms used interchangeably include digital or digital-only banks or neobanks. By contrast, so-called digital wallets or e-wallets such as Apple Pay, PayPal or Google Pay usually serve as intermediaries between a consumer’s traditional account or credit card and a merchant, usually via a smartphone or computer.
What’s the draw in Asia?
Hundreds of millions of people under-served by traditional institutions, for one thing. In China, India and elsewhere, digital wallets such as Alipay, WeChat Pay and Paytm have already become ubiquitous, offering millions of people an easy way to store and spend their money via mobile phone. Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines are also among the world’s biggest under-banked countries; together they have almost half a billion people.
Is Hong Kong short of banks?
No, but the city is among the most cash-reliant major economies, leaving room for newcomers to disrupt the entrenched industry. Ant Financial, an Alibaba Group Holding affiliate that runs Alipay and MYBank, and Tencent Holdings, the company behind WeBank and WeChat Pay, are among the owners of the eight ventures licensed to create virtual banks in Hong Kong, with operations expected to start as early as the end of the year.
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Match info
Champions League quarter-final, first leg
Liverpool v Porto, Tuesday, 11pm (UAE)
Matches can be watched on BeIN Sports
What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylturbo
Transmission: seven-speed DSG automatic
Power: 242bhp
Torque: 370Nm
Price: Dh136,814
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Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
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Wonka
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VEZEETA PROFILE
Date started: 2012
Founder: Amir Barsoum
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: HealthTech / MedTech
Size: 300 employees
Funding: $22.6 million (as of September 2018)
Investors: Technology Development Fund, Silicon Badia, Beco Capital, Vostok New Ventures, Endeavour Catalyst, Crescent Enterprises’ CE-Ventures, Saudi Technology Ventures and IFC
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Race card
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,600m
5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,600m
6pm: Arabian Triple Crown Round-2 Group 3 (PA) Dh300,000 2,200m
6.30pm: Liwa Oaisi Group 2 (PA) Dh300,000 1,400m
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 1,600m
7.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh100,000 1,600m
The National selections: 5pm: Flit Al Maury, 5.30pm: Sadah, 6pm: RB Seqondtonone, 6.30pm: RB Money To Burn, 7pm: SS Jalmood, 7.30pm: Dalaalaat
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NBA Finals so far
(Toronto lead 3-1 in best-of-seven series_
Game 1 Raptors 118 Warriors 109
Game 2 Raptors 104 Warriors 109
Game 3 Warriors 109 Raptors 123
Game 4 Warriors 92 Raptors 105
Fitness problems in men's tennis
Andy Murray - hip
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Roger Federer - back
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Kei Nishikori - wrist
Marin Cilic - adductor
