Russian Africa Corps retreats from Kidal as separatists claim northern Mali

Russian forces operating under the banner of the Africa Corps have confirmed their withdrawal from Kidal, the northern Malian city that has long served as a focal point of the separatist insurgency. The decision follows a weekend of coordinated violence across the country, during which separatist fighters and Islamist militants launched simultaneous attacks on military positions in Bamako, Gao, Sevare, and Kidal.

In a series of updates on social media, the Africa Corps stated that it had left the locality along with Malian troops, noting that wounded personnel and heavy equipment had been evacuated. This move comes after the Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) declared the city free of Russian and Malian forces, asserting that it is now under their control. While the Africa Corps confirmed the departure from Kidal, it maintained that its operations would continue elsewhere in the country.

The FLA, which seeks a breakaway state for the Tuareg-dominated north, indicated that an agreement had been reached to ensure the secure withdrawal of the foreign contingent. A source close to the local governor told AFP that Mali's authorities are no longer present in the city, leaving it to the jihadists and the FLA. This development represents a significant reversal for the military government, which had recaptured the city with Russian assistance in late 2023.

The retreat from Kidal is part of a wider crisis that has severely tested the stability of the military regime. The violence escalated on Saturday when Defence Minister Sadio Camara was killed in a suicide truck bombing near the capital, Bamako. The Alliance of Sahel States (AES), a coalition comprising Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, condemned the attacks as a monstrous plot backed by enemies of the Sahel's liberation.

The Africa Corps, formerly dominated by the Wagner group before its leader's death in 2023, was established to fill the security vacuum left by the withdrawal of French troops. Now overseen by the Russian Defence Ministry and led by Maj-Gen Andrey Averyanov, the force has faced accusations of committing atrocities against civilians while securing access to Mali's natural resources. Despite these controversies, the group's reluctance to engage deeply in the conflict has now left a critical gap in northern security.

As the situation in Kidal stabilises under separatist control, the broader implications for the region remain uncertain. The military government faces an existential challenge as it attempts to manage the fallout from the loss of the northern city and the death of its top defence official. With operations continuing elsewhere, the Africa Corps remains a key variable in the evolving dynamics of the Sahel conflict.