France Gives Way for Wider EU Role in West Africa Islamist Fight

European forces will takeover from French troops fighting Islamist insurgents in West Africa within weeks, President Emmanuel Macron said amid criticism over the former colonial powers role in the region.

A European mission will train local troops and extend its geographical scope, Macron told journalists in the Mauritanian capital, Nouakchott, Tuesday. He spoke after closed-door meetings with leaders of the West African countries worst-hit by Islamist violence -- Mali, Niger, Chad, Mauritania and Burkina Faso -- and European partners, including Germany, Italy, and Spain.

“The land we have taken over will not be given up,” Macron said. “Victory is possible in the Sahel.”

France has more than 5,000 troops across the Sahel as part of a counter-terrorism mission -- it first deployed forces in Mali in 2013. After 13 French soldiers were killed on a single mission last year, Macron threatened at a similar summit in January to withdraw troops unless West African leaders dealt with anti-French sentiment and ramped up their own efforts to stop militants gaining ground in the region.

That expansion of the militants reach is causing increasing concern. Attacks have been taking place further south since groups affiliated to al-Qaeda occupied urban centers in northern Mali in 2012, and violence has already spilled over to several other countries in the region, including Benin, Ghana and Togo.

At the same time, there‘s been a rise in reports of civilian abuse by regional West African forces since Macron’s call to action. Since January alone, 270 civilians have been killed in Mali, 123 in Niger and 213 in Burkina Faso, in attacks attributed to government forces, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, an organization tracking violent incidents and attacks.

“Investigations will be carried out,” Macron said. “France, as it has already done, is prepared to support those investigations, which must be completed.”

Tuesdays announcement comes as other partners boost support for the mission. The U.S. will help fund new equipment, Macron said. The African Union is deploying 3,000 troops, its chairman, Moussa Faki Mahamat said in Nouakchott. And German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who joined via conference call, pledged 120 million euros ($135 million) to support troops in the region.