Armed groups attack Malian military convoy in Gao region

Mali says counterattack nether mode arsenic rebels assertion they inflicted ‘human losses’ and ‘material damage’ connected troops.

Mali’s service says it has launched a counterattack aft fighters linked to al-Qaeda and members of a separatist radical ambushed soldiers successful the volatile north.

The Malian subject said successful a connection connected Saturday that equipped groups ambushed a convoy successful a distant portion of the Gao region.

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Both the determination al-Qaeda affiliate, Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), and the separatist Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) claimed work for the onslaught successful abstracted statements that spoke astir “great quality losses” and “serious worldly damage” connected the broadside of the Malian army.

The service has not provided details of its losses but said its partners were besides attacked, apt referring to Russian paramilitaries oregon mercenaries.

“Our convoy that was leaving Anefis for Gao was attacked this greeting adjacent Tabankort. The warring is ongoing. It is an ambush,” a subject root based successful Gao told the AFP quality agency.

Mali has been successful the grip of a information situation for much than 14 years.

The FLA seeks to found an autarkic authorities successful bluish Mali. Meanwhile, JNIM is considered the deadliest equipped radical of its benignant successful West Africa.

JNIM seeks to seizure much territory and presently controls swaths of agrarian land. The warring has triggered a humanitarian crisis, with much than 5 cardinal radical – astir 20 percent of the colonisation – successful request of assistance.

AFP reported that images released by the FLA purportedly showed dozens of service prisoners seized during the ambush.

The rebels besides released footage that they said showed Malian soldiers surrendering.

In the video, the rebels look to sprout astatine immoderate of the soldiers arsenic they prevarication connected the ground.

The ambush occurred arsenic the Malian service convoy was travelling from the strategical bluish municipality of Anefis to Gao.

On July 10, the Malian service confirmed it had retaken Anefis successful an cognition that killed astir 30 of its soldiers and injured astir 60 others. The municipality had been seized by the FLA and JNIM six days earlier. The FLA said it mislaid immoderate of its champion fighters during the offensive.