Russia extends congratulations to Mali for reclaiming rebel stronghold

Kidal was a rebel stronghold in the north until the Malian army took back control of it in 2014.

Moscow commended Mali’s military administration on Wednesday for taking back the town of Kidal in the north. The town had been mostly controlled by ethnic Tuareg rebels, who authorities have blamed for the region’s instability.

Following an assault that left armed militants with significant casualties, the Malian army declared on Tuesday that it had recaptured Kidal. According to interim leader Assimi Goita, the operation’s goal was to restore the West African nation’s territorial integrity.

Goita declared on X (previously Twitter) that “our mission is not complete,” reiterating the security forces’ triumph over rebel groups commanded by Tuaregs who had taken control of Kidal since 2014 after forcing the army out.

The victory, according to the Russian Foreign Ministry, shows the Malian Armed Forces’ (FAMa) “impressive growth” in combat capability.

“On November 14, the Armed troops of Mali fully freed Kidal from rebel Tuareg factions, which had been the principal bastion of anti-government troops for the previous ten years. The ministry released a statement saying, “The Russian side congratulates the Malian authorities on this significant victory.”

With significant assistance from the French military, which intervened in 2013 in response to a spike in violence in the nation’s north, Mali has been battling an Islamist insurgency since 2012. However, due to perceived shortcomings in France’s deployment in the Sahel, the coup leaders in Bamako, who seized power in 2020, ordered the withdrawal of French forces last year.

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Additionally, the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilisation Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) was given until December 31 by the military authority to remove its 15,000 personnel.

However, since August, the withdrawal of the stabilisation mission has increased tensions in northern Mali as rebels, jihadists, and state security forces vie for control.

Following a similar move in the town of Ber in August, the UN announced last month that it was accelerating the withdrawal of peacekeepers from facilities in the Kidal region in response to a rapidly deteriorating security situation. FaMa stated that while directing the UN mission disengagement, seven of its officers were slain in combat with the rebel group. According to MINUSMA, three peacekeepers were also hurt in the attack on their evacuation convoy.

A Tuareg coalition known as the Coordination of Azawad Movements (CMA) had previously charged Malian authorities with trying to seize UN peacekeeping camps, including those in CMA-controlled territory, in violation of a 2014 Algiers ceasefire and security accord. In order to put an end to a series of Tuareg uprisings that had taken place since the country’s independence from France in 1960, the CMA and the Malian government signed the pact.

In a statement released on Tuesday, the armed groups acknowledged that Kidal was now under the military administration’s authority. The military government has made recovering territorial sovereignty its motto. A rebel alliance spokesperson told Reuters that they strategically decided to withdraw from the stronghold town so the army could recover it.

The leaders of Burkina Faso and Niger’s armed forces have congratulated their counterparts in Mali on the “liberation of Kidal,” which they regard as a significant victory in the struggle against armed groups operating in the Sahel.