French Defense Minister Florence Parly said Sunday his country would deploy up to 600 additional soldiers in the African Sahel region to combat extremists. This step would bring the French troops in that area to 5,100 soldiers. Parly said most of the reinforcements to the Barkhane force will be deployed in the three borders zone between Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger. "Another part of these reinforcements will be directly engaged within the G5 Sahel forces to accompany them in combat," she said, the Associated Press reported. Parly added that Chad "should soon deploy an additional battalion" within the joint force of the G5 Sahel, which brings together Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and Chad in the three borders zone, PArly added. “The reinforcement ... should allow us to increase the pressure against the ISIS-GS... We will leave no space for those who want to destabilize the Sahel.”