PARIS: French forces tried to use a journalist’s visit to northern Mali to track a militant leader but failed to prevent the reporter from being kidnapped by the militants, French media reported Wednesday.
The report comes amid an investigation into what happened to journalist Olivier Dubois, 48, who was abducted in the northern Malian town of Gao in April 2021.
He flew home to France in March, nearly two years after he was kidnapped by the Al-Qaeda-linked Group to Support Islam and Muslims (JNIM).
Based on French and Malian judicial documents from the probe, the report said a fixer working with Dubois had informed France’s anti-militant Barkhane force of his plans to interview a militant leader.
Barkhane planned to track the leader back to his base but then abandoned the operation because it was deemed “too dangerous for the journalist,” it said.
But they did not deploy the necessary means to prevent the journalist from being kidnapped, it added.
The report was published by newspapers Le Monde and Liberation as well as broadcasters RFI and TV5Monde.
A diplomatic source told AFP a letter was sent to Dubois the day he was kidnapped, formally urging him not to make the trip, after “a meeting the previous day with the embassy during which he had already been given the same advice.”
In addition, Liberation — for whom Dubois was writing at the time — had refused to back his plan to interview the militant in view of the risks.
Contacted by AFP, the French foreign ministry declined to comment due to the ongoing investigation.
The military general staff also declined to comment.
An internal army probe found in late 2021 that there had been “no personal fault within the Barkhane force” over the kidnapping.
But “the sensitivity of the topic was not sufficiently taken into account so as to allow... a dissuasive action with regards to the journalist,” it said.
Arnaud Froger, in charges of investigations at Reporters Without Borders, told AFP the French army’s plan had posed “a grave ethical problem.”
“They were going to endanger the life of a French journalist and citizen to reach a medium-level intelligence target, without planning any measures in case things took a bad turn, and also without passing on the information about the risk he was taking,” he said.
French forces withdrew from Mali last year following a fallout with the ruling junta.
French army in spotlight over journalist’s kidnapping in Mali
https://arab.news/yg53g
French army in spotlight over journalist’s kidnapping in Mali
- The report comes amid an investigation into what happened to journalist Olivier Dubois, 48, who was abducted in the northern Malian town of Gao in April 2021
- The report was published by newspapers Le Monde and Liberation as well as broadcasters RFI and TV5Monde
Asharq Business with Bloomberg, Nasdaq to bring real-time US equities data to MENA
- Nasdaq to deliver exclusive real-time US equities market data
- Real-time updates fully integrated into Asharq Business’ data infrastructure and available across all platforms
RIYADH: Asharq Business with Bloomberg, the region’s leading business and financial news multi-platform channel, announced Tuesday a strategic three-year collaboration with Nasdaq, to deliver exclusive real-time US equities market data and updates to investors and decision-makers across the Middle East.
Through access to Nasdaq’s official data product, Nasdaq Last Sale (NLS), Asharq Business with Bloomberg will receive real-time last-sale trade updates and calculated insights across major US exchanges directly from the Nasdaq Market Center. The collaboration strengthens market transparency, enhances data-driven storytelling, and provides audiences and partners with deeper insight into global financial activity.
With a rapidly growing investor base in the region — and with Nasdaq serving as a primary destination for many Arab and regional investors — Asharq Business with Bloomberg reinforces its mission to deliver timely, accurate, and exclusive financial updates by integrating NLS data into its digital platforms, live markets coverage, and broader data ecosystem.
Leveraging its partnership with Bloomberg Media — which grants access to reporting from over 2,700 journalists and analysts worldwide — Asharq Business with Bloomberg continues to build on its reputation as the region’s most trusted and credible multi-platform business news source. The collaboration with Nasdaq underscores its commitment to providing reliable, data-backed content across social, digital, and streaming platforms, available for audiences anytime and anywhere.
Dr Nabeel Al Khatib, General Manager of Asharq News Network, commented: “It has been five years since the inception of Asharq Business with Bloomberg, and our audience has always been at the center of everything we do. We invest time and effort to understand what matters to them, ensuring we deliver data and stories that genuinely support informed decision-making. With growing regional interest in global markets, our collaboration with Nasdaq marks a strategic step toward offering a clearer, more comprehensive view of international financial activity. Through Nasdaq Last Sale, we aim to further empower our audience with transparent, real-time insights, strengthening their ability to navigate an increasingly interconnected global investment landscape.”
The Nasdaq leadership team added: “We are pleased to collaborate with Asharq Business with Bloomberg to broaden access to high-quality US market data in the Middle East. Through Nasdaq Last Sale, we aim to enhance transparency, support informed decision-making, and contribute to a more connected global investor community.”
