Burkina Faso hostage rescue | |||||||
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Part of The War against the Islamic State, Operation Barkhane, Terrorism in Burkina Faso, Jihadist insurgency in Burkina Faso, Islamist insurgency in the Sahel and Insurgency in the Maghreb (2002–present) | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
France Supported by: United States (intelligence support) Burkina Faso (logistical support) | Islamic State of the Great Sahara (EIGS)[1] | ||||||
Units involved | |||||||
Unknown | |||||||
Strength | |||||||
24 commandos ~ 10 helicopters 2 MQ-9 Reaper drones 1 CASA medical plane 1 MQ-9 Reaper drone | 6 gunmen | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
2 killed | 4 killed[1] | ||||||
4 hostages freed | |||||||
On May 9, 2019, French special operations forces conducted a rescue operation in Northern Burkina Faso, that resulted in the deaths of two French petty officers, four out of six gunmen, and the recovery of all four hostages of French, American, and South Korean nationality. The operation was conducted by approximately 24 operators from Commando Hubert, the 1st Marine Infantry Parachute Regiment, and the Air Parachute Commando n° 10, CPA 10, with intelligence and overhead support from the United States Military.[2][3][4]