French Rafale and Mirage fighter aircraft conducted sorties from France and Chad, where French fighter jets were already deployed for Operation Epervier. The fighter aircraft refuel and rearm in Chad's capital, Ndjamena, in central Africa. French attack helicopters and special operations forces may have deployed to Mali's central Mopti region from their base in Burkina Faso, and French support elements are positioned in the Malian capital, Bamako. French airstrikes have targeted jihadist bases and supply depots in Gao city, Afhabo town near Kidal, and at Lere near Timbuktu — al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb's principal basing locations in northern Mali. Bombing continues in the vicinity of Lere and toward the central Malian town of Diabali, which al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb has taken. Jihadists have reportedly abandoned Gao.