Mali: ‘Wagner’ Suffers Defeat in ‘African-Style’ Combat
A strong and unexpected blow was dealt to the Russian private military group Wagner in Mali during a two-day battle with Tuareg rebels.
The Tuareg rebels in northern Mali stated that they had killed and injured dozens of soldiers and fighters from the Russian private military group Wagner during a two-day battle near the Algerian border, following an announcement by the Malian army that it had lost two soldiers and that its forces had killed about 20 rebels.
The Permanent Strategic Framework for Peace, Security, and Development, a rebel movement, announced in a statement that it had seized armored vehicles, trucks, and tankers during the fighting in the border town of Tinzaouatène last Thursday and Friday.
The rebel group also claimed to have damaged a helicopter, which crashed in Kidal, hundreds of kilometers away.
Meanwhile, the Malian army announced in statements that two of its soldiers were killed and 10 others injured.
It added that one of its helicopters crashed in Kidal on Friday during a routine mission, but no one was killed.
Fighting broke out between the army and separatists in the town of Tinzaouatène, near the border with Algeria, after the army announced last Monday that it had taken control of the strategic area of In-Afarak, located 120 km northwest of Tessalit in the Kidal region.
Several Russian military bloggers reported on Sunday that at least 20 Wagner group members were killed in an ambush near the Algerian border with Mali.
Renowned Russian military blogger Semyon Pegov, who goes by the name “War Gonzo,” said, “Employees of the private military group Wagner, who were moving in a convoy with government forces, were killed in Mali, and some were captured.”
The “Baza” news channel on Telegram, linked to Russian security institutions, reported that at least 20 Wagner fighters were killed.
Reuters was unable to independently verify the bloggers’ reports.
The Wagner group has played a prominent role in some of the fiercest battles in the Russian war in Ukraine, but its future became uncertain when its leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, was killed in a plane crash in August, two months after leading a short-lived rebellion against the Russian defense establishment.
Mali, where military authorities seized power in coups in 2020 and 2021, has faced a rebellion from Islamist groups for years. They stated that the Russian forces present in the country are not Wagner mercenaries but trainers helping local forces use equipment purchased from Russia.
The Baza channel report on Sunday stated that Wagner fighters have been in Mali since at least 2021.
The military council, which has been in power in Mali since 2020, has made the recovery of full control over the country’s territory one of its priorities.
Relations between the Malian military council and France have deteriorated due to accusations by Malian authorities of French laxity in defending the country’s territorial integrity.
Disputes between Bamako and Paris allowed Russian intervention in West Africa, a move that quickly spread like wildfire in a region plagued by terrorist groups.
Since calling on Wagner and expelling French forces, armed separatist groups have lost control of several areas in northern Mali at the end of 2023, following an army offensive that culminated in Bamako’s forces taking control of Kidal, a separatist stronghold.
Mali has been suffering from violence committed by groups linked to Al-Qaeda and ISIS, as well as other criminal gangs, since 2012.
France is closely monitoring the battles in Mali, as the success of the military council in controlling the rebellion with Russian support would reduce its chances of returning to play an active role in a region that has long been considered Paris’s backyard.
