The French operation included five days of patrol, reconnaissance and intelligence operations west of Timbuktu, a region the government struggles to control because of constant attacks by armed groups and other criminal activity.
Villages in the region are quickly emptying as residents flee from gangs that come in the night to loot and, in some cases, kill before retreating back into their desert hideouts.
Malian military leaders say that the French presence may deter jihadists from doing more damage.
“They have firepower. Nobody will dare compete with them. The planes in the sky, the drones, medical evacuations by helicopter if needed — it’s good,” said Traore.
– ‘Move towards peace’ –
In his ambulance, a Toyota van, Traore has a stretcher, an empty oxygen bottle, two medical first aid kits and not much else.
“When we have injured people, we transport them to a UN or Barkhane base as quickly as possible, so they can receive care,” said Traore.
In May, nine Malian soldiers died in a rebel ambush near Timbuktu, some because they failed to get medical attention quickly enough.
“With Operation Serval, we had progress, things were better,” said the doctor. “But little by little, we ask ourselves how long the French will be staying.”
With six to eight men to a pick-up, their legs hanging out, Malian vehicles struggle to keep up with the French and their four-wheel drives in the soft sand. The group makes frequent stops because of the terrain.
Many of the soldiers who come from the south are just discovering the desert and its drawbacks, and struggle to communicate with the locals in their regional dialects.
One condition for the CMA agreeing to sign the peace accord was that its fighters and other combatants be included in a security force for the north, and for locals to be represented in government institutions.
Bocar Diarra, 25, from southwestern Mali, more than 1,500 kilometres (930 miles) from Timbuktu, doesn’t place his trust in the current army, nor the future “reconstructed” forces.
According to Diarra, “the helicopters are the most important. Nobody can patrol and hold the big northern desert”.
“As long as the French stay, it will be all right, the jihadists will not dare come south. We will move towards peace,” he said.
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