The troops are all part of the 11th Parachute Brigade of the French Army. The assault force was also included a company element from the 17th Parachute Engineer Regiment (17e Régiment de Génie Parachutiste – 17e RGP), also part of the 11th Parachute Brigade, who jumped into the airport at Timbuktu to clear obstacles and open the airfield for operational use.
The following video shows a French Foreign Legion (2e régiment étranger de parachutistes – 2e REP) paradrop into Timbuktu, Mali, from a C-160 Transal of the French Air Force. It was taken on Jan. 28, from the Infra-Red camera of a Harfang drone, supporting Operation Serval from Niger.