The legionnaires from the Desert Task Force “Dragon”, armed mostly by the 2nd Foreign Infantry Regiment (2e REI), continued in the desert of West Africa their effort against local terrorist groups even in June 2020, within France’s Operation Barkhane.
Operation Barkhane: Immersion in the three-border region
See the French Army’s nice report on Foreign Legion military activities in the important three-border region of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, situated in the Sahel area of West Africa, around April-May 2020, aimed at local armed terrorist groups (GAT).
Read moreOperation Barkhane: Immersion in the three-border region
44 years ago: Deadly accident in Africa
In late May 1976, an air accident occurred during a military exercise in the then French Territory of the Afars and the Issas (TFAI, today’s Djibouti), a country located in the Horn of Africa. A French Army helicopter crashed. Eight men on board were killed, including six legionnaires from GOLE (Foreign Legion Task Force). Another two legionnaires died later. At the time, the incident became the deadliest accident for the Legion since the end of the Algerian War (1962). And it still remains the second deadliest accident for the Legion since 1962. Nevertheless, for unknown reasons, the fatal crash has been completely forgotten in France. Here is the article dedicated to this sad event and to pay homage to the victims.
2e REI: Task Force Dragon in April 2020
In April 2020, 600 legionnaires from the 2nd Foreign Infantry Regiment (2e REI) continue to search and neutralize the Terrorist Armed Groups (GAT) in the remote three-border region of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, in the Sahel area of Africa.
2020 Operation Monclar in the Sahel
In March 2020, a three-week military operation to search and neutralize terrorist elements took place in the three-border area of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger. Two Foreign Legion task forces were involved in the operation in this deserted land.
2e REI: 750 legionnaires to deploy overseas
In 2020, around 750 legionnaires of the 2nd Foreign Infantry Regiment (2e REI) will deploy overseas, according to their commanding officer, Colonel Arnaud Guerry. The vast majority of the men take part in anti-terrorist Operation Barkhane in Mali, West Africa.
2e REI: Training for Africa 2020
See a video of a platoon from the 2nd Foreign Infantry Regiment (2e REI) that is training in France before their deployment to Mali in West Africa, to participate there in anti-terrorist Operation Barkhane.
2e REI + 1er REG + 1er REC: Training before deployment
In October-November 2019, a company from the 2nd Foreign Infantry Regiment (2e REI), a company from the 1st Foreign Engineer Regiment (1er REG) and two squadrons of the 1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment (1er REC) moved to military camps to participate in an intensive training before their overseas deployment. See images.
Read more2e REI + 1er REG + 1er REC: Training before deployment
Foreign Legion: 2019 Armistice Day
The 11th of November marks in France the Armistice Day, when the entire nation commemorate the end of hostilities of World War I. As every year, even the French Foreign Legion units commemorated the 101st Armistice Day on November 11, 2019, and remembered the 36,000 legionnaires and foreign volunteers being killed or wounded during the war. See the photos.