Operation Barkhane rebellion against the central Malian government was exploited by Islamist groups who gained control over the northern half of the country. In response, France launched a military operation in January 2013 to stop the Islamist offensive from toppling the Malian government and to re-capture Northern Mali. The operation, codenamed Operation Serval, ended in the complete re-capture of all Islamist held territory by the operations conclusion on the 15 July 2014. Following the end of Operation Serval, France recognised the need to provide stability in the wider Sahel region by helping the region's various governments combat terrorism. The French defense minister,
Operation Sangaris Operation Sangaris Operation Sangaris is a military intervention of the French military in the Central African Republic, from late 2013 till 2016. It has been the 7th French military intervention there since the independence of the country in 1960. On 30 October 2016, France announced it officially ended Operation Sangaris. According to Jean-Vincent Brisset, senior researcher at Iris, the name refers to the African butterfly "Cymothoe sangaris", and was chosen because "butterflies are not dangerous, do not last very long, are considered pretty and are politically correct". In late 2012, President François Bozizé requested international aid from France and the