French President Emmanuel Macron reiterated to Iraq his determination to fight the Islamic State group during an interview with the Iraqi Prime Minister, after the death of three French soldiers during the month of August, announced on Wednesday. Elysium.
A member of the special forces killed on Tuesday
Emmanuel Macron reiterated to Mohamed Chia al-Soudani “France’s commitment to continue the fight against Daesh, its resolute commitment within the framework of the international coalition, alongside the Iraqi government, the Iraqi Kurdistan regional government and of the Syrian Democratic Forces, as well as its support for the Iraqi populations, particularly in the areas liberated from Daesh”, declared the French presidency.
The telephone interview took place on Tuesday a few hours after the announcement of the death of a member of the French special forces during an anti-jihadist operation in support of the Iraqi army. Four other French soldiers were injured during this operation. Two others had been killed in other circumstances during the month of August.
600 French soldiers deployed
According to an Iraqi security source in Kirkuk, Monday evening, a joint operation “Iraqi anti-terrorist forces and soldiers from the French forces stationed in Kirkuk suffered an ambush” by jihadists from the EI group in the province of Salahedine, in the desert of al -Aïth, bordering the province of Kirkuk.
The Arabic acronym Daesh is commonly used by France to refer to the IS group. “The Iraqi Prime Minister thanked the President of the Republic for this and paid tribute to the three French soldiers who died in operations in Iraq in recent days”, according to the press release from the Elysée.
Around 600 French soldiers are deployed in the region as part of Operation Chammal, which includes a training and advisory component for Iraqi forces and an air support component for the benefit of the international coalition Inherent Resolve against the IS group, created in 2014.