Mali attacks rebels who murdered numerous Russians and military personnel

Following the recent deaths of numerous Malian soldiers and their Russian partners at the hands of Islamist extremists and ethnic Tuareg rebels, Mali has launched airstrikes against insurgent targets in and around the town of Tinzaouaten, located in its vast northern desert.

In what looks to be Wagner’s greatest defeat on African soil, the army of Mali and the Russian private military firm Wagner both reported losses between July 22 and July 27 in the Tinzaouaten region, near the Algerian border.

Since the army, which took over in two coups in 2020 and 2021, drove out French and U.N. troops who had been fighting Islamist terrorists for ten years and replaced them with Wagner, the Russians have been present in Mali.

Late on Tuesday, the Malian army said that it had launched an attack on a “coalition of terrorists” in the Tinzaouaten region, working with troops from Burkina Faso, a neighboring country ruled by a military junta that supports Russia.

It added that “specific high-value targets including caches, logistical positions, and vehicles have been hit” and advised the public to avoid areas controlled by insurgents.

The Tuareg rebel group involved in the previous combat, called the Permanent Strategic Framework, or CSP for short, denounced the airstrikes and claimed that scores of civilians had been murdered by a Burkina Faso-operated drone.

According to reports, the majority of the deceased were migrant workers from Africa, primarily from Niger, Chad, and Sudan, who were employed in nearby artisanal gold mining.

“This attack against civilians demonstrates the ongoing chaos and failure of these military governments,” the statement read.

A request for response from the military government of Burkina Faso was not immediately answered.

Mali and Wagner have not disclosed the number of soldiers they lost in the most recent fighting; however, Wagner has stated that Sergei Shevchenko, the commander of their unit in the region, was one of the deceased. It was estimated by Russian military bloggers that at least twenty Wagner personnel had perished.

An Islamist organization connected to al Qaeda claimed to have murdered 50 Russians and 10 Malian soldiers, while the CSP claimed to have killed and wounded several Malians and Russians.

After their forces overthrew their governments in coups, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger—all erstwhile Western allies—signed a mutual defense treaty last year, which Mali used to justify Burkina Faso’s involvement in the airstrikes.

The Sahara desert, which includes portions of northern Mali, is home to the Tuareg people. Many claim that the government of Mali has marginalized them.

In 2012, Tuareg separatists began an insurrection against Mali, claiming the right to an autonomous nation they termed Azawad. Later, an Islamist uprising in the same area that was allied with al Qaeda became intertwined with their conflict.