France Kills 20 Insurgents in Remote African Region French forces strike forest near Mali border By Newser Editors and Wire Services Posted May 1, 2017 12:45 AM CDT 12 comments Comments French soldiers on patrol in Gao, northern Mali. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay, File) View 1 more image (Newser) – French forces fighting extremism in Africa's Sahel region say they have killed at least 20 jihadists in a forest on the border between Mali and Burkina Faso. A statement Sunday from Operation Barkhane says soldiers also discovered large amounts of arms, ammunition, rocket launchers, and explosives in the area. A resident in a nearby village says planes dropped bombs in the area late Saturday and many jihadists fled by foot. The Burkina Faso-Mali border region has been increasingly unstable in recent months, the AP reports. More than 3,500 French soldiers are in Mali, Niger, Chad, Burkina Faso, and Mauritania as part of Operation Barkhane, France's ongoing anti-insurgent operation in the region. (Read more Mali stories.) View 1 more image My Take on This Story Report a story error Show results without voting | 4% Hilarious 15% Intriguing 8% Depressing 64% Brilliant 10% Scary 0% Ridiculous