The Senegalese military launched an operation against rebels in the south of the Casamance regionthe chef of the personnel said in late statement on Sunday.
“In the framework of their mission to secure people and goods, the army on Sunday, March 13, 2022, launched an operation with the main objective of disassembly of the bases of the MFDC faction of Salif Sadio,” the statement said.
“This operation also intended to destroy all participating armed bands in criminal Activities in the region,” It said.
“The army remains determined … to preserve the integrity of national territory at all costs. »
Movement of Democratic Forces of Casamance (MFDC) fought a low-intensity separatist conflict in southern Senegal since 1982, a conflict that left several thousand dead.
The MFCD is divided into several factions, with one directed by Salif Sadio.
In the latest shock on On January 24, four Senegalese soldiers were killed while seven were captured alive and taken across the border to Gambia.
The seven were freed on February 14th.
Casamance was in Portuguese possession for several hundred years until ceded to colonial France in 1888. It became part of Senegal after the country’s independence in 1960.
the region which has a distinct culture and language is separated geographically from the rest of Senegal by the Gambia River, around which the small state is located of Gambia.
Casamance rebels, who are accused of timber and cannabis trafficking, have traditionally sought refuge in Gambia or Guinea-Bissau, which also borders Senegal.
The conflict was largely dormant until the Senegalese army launched a major new offensive last year, designed for drive out the rebels.
Senegalese President Macky Sall has made achieve “final peace” in Casamance a priority of his second term.
