In Mali, rebels slaughtered several dozen Wagner members from Russia

In Mali, rebels slaughtered several dozen Wagner members from Russia Anastasia Kolesnikova

Tuaregs destroyed several dozens of Russian mercenaries/Collage 24 Channel

Tuareg rebels in northern Mali have ambushed government troops backed by Russian mercenaries. Dozens of Wagner mercenaries are known to have been killed.

Tuareg rebels in northern Mali have claimed to have killed and wounded dozens of Russian soldiers and mercenaries during three days of fighting near the Algerian border.

Russian Wagner mercenaries ambushed

A column of government troops and allied Russian mercenaries was routed in a battle with Tuaregs in northern Mali.

The information is confirmed by Telegram channels previously associated with the Wagner PMC. They publish photos and videos from the battlefield, which show the bodies of the dead and burnt equipment.

The rout of the Malian troop column was confirmed to AFP by a local official. According to him, the military lost at least 17 people killed.

A former employee of the UN mission in the city of Kidal in northern Mali told the agency that 15 Wagner mercenaries were killed or captured after a three-day battle.

At the same time, a member of the Tuareg movement, Mossa Ag Inzoma, said that “many dozens” of Russian PMC mercenaries were killed and captured.

At the same time, the Malian government army says that its units, which were patrolling in the area of ​​the border city of Tinzaouaten, have retreated. The military said in a statement that “fierce fighting against a terrorist coalition” was ongoing.

Where are the Wagnerites in Mali

The Tuareg are an ethnic group that inhabit the Sahara region, specifically parts of northern Mali. Many of them feel marginalized by the Malian government. In 2012, a military coup took place in the country, and Tuareg rebels and Islamists took control of northern Mali, declaring it an independent state. The Islamists soon launched an offensive, and the new transitional government asked for help from France. A few months after the French military arrived in 2013, the UN sent its own peacekeeping mission, MINUSMA. The Malian army seized power again in 2020, and since then the junta has tried to distance itself from France, its former parent country, and the French military was sent home. In 2021, the government invited the Wagner PMC to Mali to guarantee its security – and soon Russian mercenaries became the only foreign force providing military assistance. The authorities asked the UN to withdraw its 12,000 peacekeepers, and the withdrawal process is ongoing.