Story perspectives

Russian Mercenaries Exit Kidal After Deal, ECOWAS Condemns Attacks

4/27/2026

Summary

Russian Mercenaries Exit

Russian Africa Corps mercenaries and Malian forces left Kidal on April 26-27, 2026 after an agreement with the Azawad Liberation Front and JNIM.
FLA spokesperson Mohamed El Maouloud Ramadan said Kidal was declared free and troops moved to Anéfis, about 100 km south.
ECOWAS condemned attacks that wounded 16 people, hit Bamako’s airport and a training camp, and were claimed by the Azawad Liberation Front and JNIM.

Summary

Camara Killed

Mali’s defence minister Sadio Camara, his wife and two grandchildren were killed by a car bomb in Kati on April 25.
Spokesperson Issa Ousmane Coulibaly said Camara died fighting his attackers, whom he neutralised.
Russia’s Bamako embassy condemned the bombing, which an al Qaeda West Africa affiliate claimed, and blamed Western intelligence.
The European Union and UN Secretary-General António Guterres condemned the attack, called for international support and announced a funeral for Camara.

Summary

Coulibaly Imposes Curfew

Governor Abdoulaye Coulibaly imposed a nightly curfew from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. for 72 hours starting April 25, 2026.
Security forces set up barricades and stepped up patrols around ORTM headquarters and a clinic treating a senior military officer.
Armed men looted banks in Mopti, left bodies in the streets and withdrew about 50 km away.
French media reported Defence Minister General Sadio Camara and family members were killed, though no official confirmation followed.

History

Historical Context

In January 2013 France deployed about 3,000 troops in Operation Serval to push Islamist militants out of northern Mali after the 2012 Tuareg-Islamist takeover. The mission reclaimed key towns by July 2014 and gave way to Operation Barkhane. Renewed attacks by groups such as the Azawad Liberation Front now spur ECOWAS and EU diplomatic pressure, recalling the Serval precedent.

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Russian Mercenaries Exit

Russian Africa Corps mercenaries and Malian forces left Kidal on April 26-27, 2026 after an agreement with the Azawad Liberation Front and JNIM.
FLA spokesperson Mohamed El Maouloud Ramadan said Kidal was declared free and troops moved to Anéfis, about 100 km south.
ECOWAS condemned attacks that wounded 16 people, hit Bamako’s airport and a training camp, and were claimed by the Azawad Liberation Front and JNIM.

1 / 4