Mali: Junta Forces Retake Strategic Town of Kidal

A military pickup carrying armed fighters drives past the iconic painted boulder marking the entrance to Kidal, a remote desert town in northern Mali long at the heart of the country's decade-long conflict between government forces, Tuareg movements, and armed groups operating across the Sahara.

By Shakeel Sobhan AFP, AP, Reuters

Mali's military regained control of the strategic town of Kidal after forcing Tuareg separatists and al-Qaeda-linked jihadists to withdraw following an offensive backed by Russia's Africa Corps.

Mali's army, supported by Russian paramilitary forces, has re-entered the northern town of Kidal, forcing the Tuareg separatists to withdraw from the strategic hold, in a symbolic boost for the country's military government and its Russian allies.

The Tuareg separatist Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) said in a statement it had "decided to carry out a strategic and controlled withdrawal of its forces from the town of Kidal." It said the withdrawal took place without direct fighting.

This followed the "disproportionate use of aerial assets by Russian mercenaries from the Africa Corps," according to an FLA spokesperson.

How did Kidal fall earlier this year?

The FLA and al-Qaeda-linked Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) seized Kidal during a series of attacks earlier this year in April that also killed Mali's defense minister.

Tuareg separatists from the Azawad Liberation Front have been fighting for years to create an independent state in northern Mali.

Mali's junta, which came to power in back-to-back coups in 2020 and 2021, has increasingly relied on Russian paramilitary support against fighters linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State.

What does Kidal's recapture mean for Mali's junta?

Analysts say the latest advance is largely a symbolic victory for Mali's junta.

"A successful recapture... affirms the military-led government's authority and boosts the army's morale, particularly after several high-profile setbacks both in the north and the central regions in recent weeks," Beverly Ochieng, associate director of Control Risks, told Reuters.

Ochieng, however, added the retaking of Kidal is largely "symbolic" and not "decisive" in Mali's campaign against jihadist and separatist groups.

Human rights organizations have often accused the Malian army and Russian paramilitaries of killing civilians during military operations, with all sides also accused of committing war crimes.

Edited by: Rana Taha

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