Drone attack kills at least 15 in northern Mali town

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BAMAKO — Tuareg rebels said a drone attack on Sunday killed at least 15 people, including children, in the northern Mali town of Tinzaouaten, near which government forces suffered heavy losses last month.

In July, Tuareg and Islamist militants killed several Malian soldiers and Russian Wagner mercenaries near the town of Tinzaouaten, and soon thereafter Mali launched airstrikes against insurgent targets in and around Tinzaouaten.

The town near the Algerian border was hit by another drone attack on Sunday, a spokesman for the rebel alliance, the Strategic Framework for Permanent Peace, Security and Development, said.

Mohamed Elmaouloud Ramadane said by telephone that the attacks hit a home, a pharmacy and other areas of the town.

He added that about 15 people, including children, had been confirmed dead and the death toll was likely to rise.

The Malian army did not respond to a request for comment.

The fighting near Tinzaouaten in late July was perhaps Wagner’s worst defeat since he stepped in two years ago to help Mali’s military junta fight the rebel group.

Tuareg rebels said they killed at least 84 Wagner mercenaries and 47 Malian soldiers, while an al-Qaeda affiliate said it killed 50 Wagner mercenaries and 10 Malian soldiers.

Neither Moray nor Wagner disclosed how many troops were lost, but Wagner said the losses were heavy.

Northern Mali is home to both Tuareg separatists and jihadist insurgents, such as al-Qaeda and the Islamic State.

The country has been battling jihadist insurgents since 2012 when the Islamist group hijacked a Tuareg rebellion.

Since 2020, the authorities’ failure to restore security has led to frustration and sparked coups in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger.

The junta subsequently cut ties with the West and regional allies and instead forged ties with Russia.

Meanwhile, the separatists signed a peace deal with the Malian government in 2015. But the CSP withdrew from the negotiations in 2022.

Reuters

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