Mali separatists withdraw from Kidal after airstrikes

Mali's military announced earlier on Tuesday that it had launched large-scale air and ground operations in the Kidal region. A source close to the FLA leadership told Reuters that the aerial operations began three days prior. It was not immediately clear how close Malian troops were to the town or if they would re-occupy it.

Mali's leaders, who took power in military coups in 2020 and 2021, have relied on Russian security support, first from the Wagner military group and since last year from the paramilitary group Africa Corps, composed of former Wagner fighters. Malian forces and Wagner fighters had previously retaken Kidal from insurgents in November 2023. However, the FLA and the al Qaeda-linked Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) seized the town again in April during nationwide attacks.