DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — France handed management of two army services to Senegal on Friday, starting the formal means of withdrawing its army presence from the West African nation amid its waning influence within the area.
The handover follows the declaration by Senegal’s President Bassirou Diomaye Faye late final 12 months that every one international troops would depart the nation.
“The French aspect handed over to the Senegalese aspect the services and housing within the Maréchal and Saint-Exupéry districts on Friday, March 7, 2025,” the French Embassy in Senegal stated in a press release Friday. “Positioned close to the Hann Park, these districts have been able to be returned because the summer season of 2024.”
Trusted information and every day delights, proper in your inbox
See for your self — The Yodel is the go-to supply for every day information, leisure and feel-good tales.
France arrange a joint fee with Senegal final month to prepare the withdrawal, and the French military lately introduced it had dismissed 162 Senegalese who labored on army bases in Dakar.
The French Embassy didn’t reply to an e mail late Friday looking for particulars on what number of service members stay in Senegal.
Senegal’s new government has taken a hard-line stance on the presence of French troops as half of a bigger regional backlash in opposition to what many see because the legacy of an oppressive colonial empire.
France has confronted opposition from some African leaders over what they described as a demeaning and heavy-handed method to the continent. It has suffered setbacks in West Africa in recent times, together with Chad, Niger and Burkina Faso, the place French troops are not on the bottom.
France has stated it’s planning to sharply scale back its presence in any respect its bases in Africa besides Djibouti, together with the 350 French troops in Senegal. It has stated it might as a substitute present protection coaching or focused army assist, based mostly on wants expressed by these nations.
