France to send 600 extra troops to African Sahel region

France has announced it is sending an extra 600 troops to Africa’s Sahel region, boosting the total number of French forces to 5,100.

Reports say most of them will be deployed to the border regions between Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso an area especially badly hit by jihadist attacks.

Attacks by militants linked to Al-qaeda and the Islamic state group have significantly increased in the past year, causing more than half a million people to flee their homes.

French president Emmanuel Macron last month hosted a summit with his counterparts from the Sahel belt of Western Africa to discuss the military campaign against jihadist militants.