French AMX-10RCR 6x6 reconnaissance armoured vehicles and CAESAR 155mm self-propelled howitzers of French Army have left the city of Niamey, capital of Niger, Thursday, January 31, 2013, to join their operation area in the region of Gao, located more than 400 km of Niamey. |
The vehicles AMX-10RCR from the 1er RIMa (1st Marine Infantry Regiment) will be involved in the operation Serval in Mali to ensure the security of Gao airport and bridges on the Niger River.
A French infantry company equipped with VAB armored personnel carrier, as well as 155 mm self-propelled howitzer CAESAR from the 11e RAMA (11th Marine Artillery Regiment) will enhance the French armed forces and Malian soldiers in Gao.
The CAESAR truck-mounted artillery system is a 155mm 52-calibre wheeled self-propelled howitzer developed by Nexter Systems (formerly Giat), based in Versailles, France. Caesar is equipped with a 155mm, 52-calibre barrel and can maintain a firing rate of six to eight rounds a minute in sustained fire, or three rounds in 15 seconds in rapid fire.
CAESAR is able of supporting all types of motorized, mechanized or armoured units including rapid deployment forces. The CAESAR represents the latest military technological innovations in mobile artillery for the modern battlefield.
French air operations continued with more than 70 missions with about twenty dedicated for air strikes. These air operations have resulted the destruction of five major targets, mainly logistics facilities and training centers in the area Aguelhok.
Around 4,000 French soldiers are now present on Malian soil. Alongside them, nearly 4,000 African soldiers are currently deployed in Mali, with 2,200 soldiers from the MISMA (Mali African-led International Support Mission to Mali) including soldiers from Togo (640), Burkina Faso (500), Nigeria (240) Niger (530), the Benin (150) and Senegal (50). Other elements are expected to join African troops in the next few weeks.
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