Malian Army Retakes Anefis but Suffers Heavy Losses in Week of Fighting

The Malian army regained control of the northern town of Anefis on July 11 after nearly a week of fighting. Al Jazeera reported that the army said about 30 troops were killed and around 60 wounded during the operation to retake the town from rebels.

General Jean Elysee Dao told state TV, “I regret the loss of around 30 people, 30 fallen martyrs,” adding that about 60 were wounded, including some in serious condition.

Tuareg separatists and fighters from an armed group linked to al-Qaeda had captured Anefis on July 4. The town lies some 100km from the rebel-held city of Kidal. The Tuareg-led Azawad Liberation Front said it had lost some of its best fighters but inflicted the heaviest material and human losses in their history in the region on the army and its allied Russian paramilitaries.

In late April, fighters from the same groups killed Defence Minister Sadio Camara and declared a siege on the capital, Bamako.