Mali: indépendantistes touareg et jihadistes attaquent un convoi de mercenaires russes et de militaires
Tuareg separatists and jihadists attacked a convoy of Russian mercenaries and Malian soldiers in northern Mali on Thursday morning, as they were en route to support their men who had been holed up for five days in a military camp in Anéfis, according to the rebels and security sources.
Last Saturday, jihadists from the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM), affiliated with Al-Qaeda, and separatists from the ALF (Azawad Liberation Front), predominantly Tuareg, carried out new coordinated attacks from the north to the south of the country. They have since claimed control of the town of Anefis (north).
But Russian paramilitaries from the Africa Corps and some Malian soldiers are still holed up inside a camp in the city.
After a first convoy of army reinforcements from the large city of Gao (north) was ambushed last Sunday and turned back, a second was attacked Thursday morning and fierce fighting is underway.
"Our troops engaged in fighting this Thursday near Tabankort (northern Mali) with reinforcements made up of 90% Russian mercenaries and Malian soldiers," Mohamed Elmaouloud Ramadane, spokesman for the FLA, told AFP.
"The convoy en route to Anéfis fell into another ambush in the Tabrichat area, near Anéfis. Fighting is ongoing," confirmed a Malian security source.
This convoy consists of "several dozen vehicles with aerial cover", according to this source.
Malian authorities, who are facing multiple attacks in this vast and difficult-to-control Sahelian country, received "equipment" destined for the North, which arrived on a "military plane", according to an airport source.
During a major offensive by the FLA and JNIM coalition in late April, Tuareg separatists recaptured the strategic town of Kidal. Located about 100 kilometers away, Anéfis is crucial for securing their hold on Kidal.
A video released by the FLA shows heavy gunfire exchanges in a desert area.
Mali has been gripped by a deep security crisis since 2012, fueled in particular by violence perpetrated by groups affiliated with the jihadist organizations Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State, as well as by community-based criminal groups and Tuareg separatist movements. This is compounded by a severe economic crisis.
Since two successive coups in 2020 and 2021, the vast desert country has been ruled by military men who came to power on the promise of restoring security and preserving its territorial integrity.
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