DefenceTalkFrance is to send a contingent of counterterror forces to help the army in Niger after militants ambushed a military patrol killing 16, the defence ministry said. The decision, announced late Saturday, was taken following a request from President Mahamadou Issoufou after Wednesday’s attack near the border with Mali. The deadly ambush, which took place […]https://www.defencetalk.com/france-sends-backup-to-niger-after-16-troops-killed-69302/

DefenceTalkTwo B-2 Spirit bombers departed Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri, for a transatlantic flight to Libya Jan. 18 in what would become the B-2’s first combat mission since Operation Odyssey Dawn in 2011. The demanding 30-plus-hour mission against two Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant camps required personnel with advanced expertise in the B-2’s […]https://www.defencetalk.com/weapons-school-officers-employ-total-force-training-during-libya-b-2-strike-68995/

DefenceTalkMore than 80 Islamic State jihadists were killed in a US aerial blitz on training camps in Libya, including fighters involved in plotting attacks in Europe, Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said Thursday. The Pentagon made the highly unusual decision to conduct the air strikes with a pair of B-2 stealth bombers that flew to North […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-stealth-bombers-kill-more-than-80-is-fighters-in-libya-68859/

DefenceTalkCentral African Republic: The Central African Republic’s capital was rocked by deadly overnight clashes as France’s defense minister was due Monday to formally end a military operation there, hailing it as a “success.” Local sources said about 10 people had been killed in a settling of scores between armed groups Sunday night in Bangui’s restive […]https://www.defencetalk.com/deadly-clashes-in-car-as-france-ends-military-mission-68526/

DefenceTalkA regional administration in Somalia said rival forces deliberately misled the US into launching an air strike that killed 13 of its troops and wounded seven others. The US confirmed conducting the strike on Wednesday morning near the town of Galkayo, but said it targeted the Shabaab, an al-Qaeda group. “During a Somali-led counterterrorism operation […]https://www.defencetalk.com/somali-force-duped-us-into-bombing-rival-official-68261/

DefenceTalkRussian arms exporter Rosoboronexport’s contracts with African countries exceed $21 billion, Yuri Demchenko, adviser to the Rosoboronexport CEO, said. Rosoboronexport will take part in the Africa Aerospace and Defence 2016 exhibition that will be held in Pretoria in South Africa on September 14-18. “We continue strengthening cooperation with a majority of north African countries and […]https://www.defencetalk.com/russian-arms-export-contracts-with-african-countries-exceed-21-bln-68162/

DefenceTalkThe German Defence Procurement Agency (BAAInBw) and Airbus Defence and Space have signed a contract to provide Heron 1 surveillance drones to support the Bundeswehr mission in Mali. Similar to the mission in Afghanistan active since 2010, the unmanned aerial systems will be leased from Israeli manufacturer IAI and operated by Airbus. Military missions will […]https://www.defencetalk.com/airbus-to-operate-heron-1-drones-for-germany-in-mali-67876/

DefenceTalkDjiboutian Armed Forces, also known as the Force Aérienne du Djibouti (FAD) soldiers completed their final test, May 16, and graduated from Area Logistics Training, May 19, 2016. The five month training with the U.S. Army Regionally Aligned Forces Soldiers taught the FAD several skills necessary for their new logistics company. “Before they started it […]https://www.defencetalk.com/djiboutian-armed-forces-soldiers-finish-a-five-month-training-67571/

DefenceTalkTwelve Algerian soldiers were killed Sunday in a helicopter crash caused by technical failure in the south of the country, the defence ministry said. The Mi-171 helicopter crashed during a reconnaissance mission near Reggane, in the southwestern province of Adrar, the APS press agency quoted the ministry as saying. The vice-minister of defence and army […]https://www.defencetalk.com/12-algerian-soldiers-killed-in-helicopter-crash-67178/

DefenceTalkAn American air strike on a Shebab training camp in Somalia killed more than 150 fighters planning an imminent attack on forces from the United States and its regional allies, the Pentagon said Monday. While the US military regularly conducts operations targeting the Al-Qaeda-linked fighters in Somalia, Saturday’s raid had a greater toll than all […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-strike-kills-at-least-150-shebab-fighters-in-somalia-66975/