Malian Army Breaks the Siege of Anéfis: Counteroffensive Opens the Road to Kidal
The Malian Army and its Russian allies have regained control of the northern town of Anéfis, in a development that opens the way for a future operation to recapture Kidal.
The Malian Army regained control of the town of Anéfis in northern Mali after several days of fierce fighting against Tuareg separatists, according to statements made on Friday by both the rebels and a military source.
Last Saturday, militants from the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM), affiliated with Al-Qaeda, together with separatists from the Azawad Liberation Front, most of whom are Tuareg, launched new coordinated attacks across northern and southern Mali, announcing that they had seized control of the town of Anéfis.
However, Russian fighters from the Africa Corps, along with Malian soldiers who had been entrenched in a military camp inside the town since Saturday, continued to resist and fight.
Russian reinforcements and additional Malian Army units arrived on Thursday evening, enabling government forces to retake the town, located approximately 100 kilometres from Kidal, which has been under separatist control since a large-scale offensive launched at the end of last April.
“They Broke Through the Obstacles”
A Malian military source told Agence France-Presse (AFP): “I can confirm that the Malian forces and their partners from the Africa Corps broke through the obstacles and reached Anéfis to reinforce our troops stationed there.”
For his part, Mohamed El Mouloud Ramadan, spokesperson for the Azawad Liberation Front, told AFP: “We decided to withdraw from Anéfis for strategic reasons and to avoid civilian casualties.”
Since 2012, Mali, located in the Sahel region, has been facing a profound security crisis characterized by violence carried out by groups affiliated with Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State, as well as by ethnically based armed groups.
This persistent insecurity has also exacerbated the country’s severe economic crisis.
Following two successive military coups in 2020 and 2021, Mali has been governed by the military authorities, who came to power pledging to restore security and preserve the territorial integrity of the vast country, which faces not only the threat of terrorism but also separatist demands, particularly from some Tuareg groups.
