politics
Russian Forces Withdraw From Kidal After Negotiated Deal With Tuareg Militants
Russian troops negotiated a safe-passage deal with militants and left the northern Malian town of Kidal last month after simultaneous attacks by al Qaeda-linked fighters and Tuareg rebels on April 25. The Azawad Liberation Front declared Kidal free the next day.
france24.comAudio version
Tap play to generate a narrated version.
Developing·Limited corroboration so far. This page will refresh as more sources emerge.
Russian forces withdrew from the strategic northern Malian town of Kidal last month after negotiating a safe-passage agreement with militants to evacuate their personnel. The pullout followed simultaneous attacks launched on April 25 by militants linked to al Qaeda and northern separatist Tuareg rebels. Several military bases were overrun across northern Mali in the days after those assaults.
The Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) declared on social media on April 26 that it had reached an agreement with Russian troops to vacate Kidal permanently. The group proclaimed that Kidal is now free. Videos emerged online showing Tuareg fighters mocking a convoy of departing Russian vehicles.
Kidal, about 1,000 miles northeast of the capital Bamako, was seized by the Malian army and Russian mercenaries in 2023. That operation ended nearly a decade of rebel rule in the town. The loss of Kidal now marks a reversal for both the junta and its Russian partners.
The crisis deepened when Malian Defense Minister Sadio Camara was killed in a suicide vehicle bombing at his home near Bamako. Sadio Camara was a Russian-trained officer and key architect of Mali’s shift toward Moscow. The al Qaeda-linked group Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam al-Muslimin (JNIM) claimed responsibility for the attack on Camara’s home.
JNIM is threatening a complete blockade of Bamako and urging Malians to revolt against the junta and adopt Sharia law. Cnn reported that the assassination and renewed militant pressure have exposed the fragility of Mali’s security strategy centered on Russian support. Russia’s Defense Ministry stated that the situation in Mali remains challenging.
