PARIS: France’s chief of staff of the armed forces, General Francois Lecointre, is stepping down to retire and will be replaced by General Thierry Burkhard, the French Presidency said in a statement on Sunday.
Burkhard was up to now army’s chief of land staff. Lecointre’s retirement was widely expected.
The announcement comes after President Emmanuel Macron announced a drawdown in Mali which will take several months of planning.
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France’s army chief Lecointre steps down, replaced by General Burkhard
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France’s army chief Lecointre steps down, replaced by General Burkhard
- General Francois Lecointre’s retirement was widely expected
Somalia’s Al-Shabab vows to fight any Israeli use of Somaliland
MOGADISHU: Somalia’s Al-Qaeda-linked militant group Al-Shabab vowed Saturday to fight any attempt by Israel “to claim or use parts of Somaliland” following its recognition of the breakaway territory.
“We will not accept it, and we will fight against it,” Al-Shabab said in a statement.
It said Israel’s recognition of Somaliland as a sovereign state showed it “has decided to expand into parts of the Somali territories” to support “the apostate administration in the northwest regions.”
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