Less than a year after her release, Sophie Pétronin is again missing. The former French hostage, who remained in the hands of the jihadists for four years, was reported in the region of Sikasso, in southern Mali, where the Malian authorities have lost his tracks. In a message sent to its units on October 29, the general directorate of the Malian gendarmerie called for "
very actively seeking
" the humanitarian aid of 76 years, who had been released in October 2020 in exchange for nearly 200 jihadists released in the Sahelian zone. "
In case of discovery
", the units were ordered to "
apprehend her and lead her under good escort
".
The Quai d'Orsay has not commented on the disappearance, the circumstances of which remain mysterious.
Was the ex-hostage allowed to return to Malian soil?
Would it have gone through neighboring Ivory Coast to reach it?
The region of Sikasso, near the border with Burkina Faso and Côte d'Ivoire, is completely colored red on the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
"
It is recalled that the risks of attack and kidnapping in areas classified in red are particularly high,
" said the Quai d'Orsay on its page dedicated to Mali.
“
Any travel plan in [the red zones] is to be formally excluded
”.
Advice to travelers.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Third alert for the ex-hostage
Since her return to France in October 2020, Sophie Pétronin had never concealed her desire to return to the Sahelian country. Barely hours after her release, she declared herself "
in great shape
" and said she wanted to return to Gao, in northern Mali. A question of "
commitment
", she asserted, vis-à-vis the children for whom she was responsible in her center. "
It's been almost four years that I haven't seen how the programs are going,
" she told the press in Bamako. "
If you make a commitment, go to the end of your commitment, otherwise you will have lost your reason for being on this earth.
She pleaded.
What his son Sébastien, largely involved in the plea for his freedom, had specified that he would ensure "
framework (r) certain things
".
"
You won't go where you want,
" he retorted, half-amused, half-serious.
To read also François D'Orcival: "Sophie Pétronin, such a strange liberation ..."
Present in Mali for sixteen years during her kidnapping, the septuagenarian had already received a first alert in 2012, when jihadist groups linked to al-Qaida had taken control of the large cities of the north, Timbuktu, Kidal and Gao.
She was then narrowly exfiltrated in Algeria with the help of Tuareg rebels, then repatriated to France ... before returning, a few weeks later.
On December 24, 2016, she was kidnapped for good by armed men, an abduction later claimed by the Support Group for Islam and Muslims (GSIM), affiliated with al-Qaida.
