A map showing the main towns and cities involved in the . The  says they killed prominent militant in  on Saturday. Belmokhtar claimed responsibility for an attack at an gas plant in January which led to the deaths of 37 hostages. In a statement read on Chadian national television, an armed forces spokesperson said: "On Saturday, March 2, at noon, Chadian armed forces operating in northern Mali completely destroyed a terrorist base [...] The toll included several dead terrorists, including their leader Mokhtar Belmokhta." The announcement of his death comes a day after the announced the senior Al-Qaeda commander had been killed by  forces in . The  said "It would be a blow to terrorism and to the criminal network around this man and other people. But it doesn't mean that the problems of Mali would be at an end. There's a lot to do to promote a political process in Mali: elections, legitimate government and so on. That work has to go on". Chad is working alongside and other nations in a force aimed at regaining control of Northern Mali which has been seized by Islamist rebels. Belmokhtar lost an eye whilst fighting in an Islamist insurgency in the 1990s; he has spent over two decades in militant Islamism. Also a former member of the (AQIM), he left to create his own militant group.
A map showing the main towns and cities involved in the . The Chadian says they killed prominent militant in Mali on Saturday. Belmokhtar claimed responsibility for an attack at an gas plant in January which led to the deaths of 37 hostages. In a statement read on Chadian national television, an armed forces spokesperson said: "On Saturday, March 2, at noon, Chadian armed forces operating in northern Mali completely destroyed a terrorist base [...] The toll included several dead terrorists, including their leader Mokhtar Belmokhta." The announcement of his death comes a day after the announced the senior Al-Qaeda commander had been killed by French forces in . The British William Hague said "It would be a blow to terrorism and to the criminal network around this man and other people. But it doesn't mean that the problems of Mali would be at an end. There's a lot to do to promote a political process in Mali: elections, legitimate government and so on. That work has to go on". Chad is working alongside France and other African nations in a force aimed at regaining control of Northern Mali which has been seized by Islamist rebels. Belmokhtar lost an eye whilst fighting in an Islamist insurgency in the 1990s; he has spent over two decades in militant Islamism. Also a former member of the (AQIM), he left to create his own militant group.
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British William Hague
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France and other African