French special forces operating in Africa's Sahel region have killed two senior Islamist militant commanders, a defense ministry statement said on Wednesday, reports Reuters.
The statement described the two as "important terrorist chiefs" from the groups Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and Ansar Eddine.
It named them as Amada Ag Hama, also known as Abdelkrim the Touareg, or Abdelkrim al-Targui, and Ibrahim Ag Inawalen, alias "Bana".
Amada Ag Hama was the most senior member of the Malian Tuareg community to join AQIM, standing out in a group which was dominated by Algerians and leading a katiba fighting force that was primarily made up of Malian Tuaregs.
He is also the cousin of Iyad Ag Ghaly, the commander of Ansar Eddine, and has been linked to a number of killings, including two RFI journalists in 2013.