Tuareg rebellion (2012): 2012 coup Internal conflict in Azawad: Foreign intervention: 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 Between August 17 to 21, 2021, French forces under Operation Barkhane launched an operation to attack Islamic State in the Greater Sahara bases located in the Dangalous forest near Indelimane village of Mali.

[1] Two Islamic State fighters captured on July 14 reported the presence of ISGS camps in the Dangarous Forest, a notoriously wooded area that is difficult to access.

[1][2] On August 17, French intelligence conducted initial operations in the forest, with a Reaper drone killing two armed men on a motorcycle.

[3][1] One of the two killed turned out to be Adnan Abu Walid al-Sahrawi, the leader of Islamic State in the Greater Sahara, although this was not immediately identifiable.

[7][8] French Minister of Defence Florence Parly stated that the killing of al-Sahrawi "deals a decisive blow to the command of Daesh in the Sahel because ISGS will no doubt have difficulty replacing its emir with a figure of the same stature.