The Polynesian soldier had been killed by an explosion in Mali.
The family of the soldier killed in Mali on December 28 was able to attend a ceremony on the tarmac of the airport Thursday, January 7. The military funeral honours were given to him by a detachment of the armed forces in French Polynesia. The ceremony took place in the strictest privacy of the family and official authorities. The body of the 28 year old soldier was then taken late in the evening to the chapel in Tarona where a mass was celebrated. The soldier was buried in the Urania cemetery.
Two other soldiers
Tanerii Mauri, who belonged to the anti-Jihadist Barkhane force, died alongside two of his comrades in the explosion of an improvised explosive device. The three men, aged 21, 23 and 28, were light armoured vehicle driver, anti-tank gunner and deputy patrol leader. They were deployed for the first time in the Sahel since mid-November. They were on an escort mission in a border area between Niger and Burkina Faso.
“Courage”
France is present in the Sahel as part of Operation Barkhane, which involves more than 5,000 men. The President of the Republic, Emmanuel Macron, has expressed his full confidence in the French military deployed in the Sahel. He praised their courage and recalled on the occasion of these three new deaths “France’s determination to continue the fight against terrorism. »
