The Malian Army has reported that its forces, backed by the Russian Africa Corps, have managed to "regain the initiative" after the offensive launched on Saturday by the Tuareg group Liberation Front of Azawad (FLA) in the north of the country, and claims to have "controlled the situation" in all the towns that were attacked.
In an official statement, it pointed out that "the coordinated air and ground response, carried out on July 4, 2026, has allowed the Malian Armed Forces, with the support of their partners, to regain the initiative and control the situation in all the localities affected by enemy attacks."
According to the military account, new clashes occurred in Anéfis on July 5 "due to the arrival of enemy reinforcements," although the Malian units "acted with determination" and carried out "a series of precision bombings" with which they allegedly destroyed "numerous enemy targets."
"The provisional assessment points to the destruction of two armored vehicles and three pickup trucks, as well as the neutralization of numerous terrorists from the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM) -- a branch of the terrorist organization Al Qaeda in the Sahel -- and the FLA," the Army stressed in a message disseminated on social media.
In the same vein, it reported the "neutralization" on Monday of "an armed terrorist group" in the vicinity of Anéfis, and reiterated its "determination" to "maintain constant pressure on armed terrorist groups." So far, the FLA has not offered information on possible casualties in its ranks.
In parallel, the Africa Corps -- formerly the Wagner Group, currently under the orbit of the Russian Ministry of Defense -- has reported in recent hours on attacks against "camps." "Not all terrorists will see the dawn," it stated on social media, where it also assured that its forces have destroyed "a terrorist pickup truck carrying ammunition."
The situation in northern Mali continues to be dominated by uncertainty and intermittent clashes, following the large-scale offensive launched at the end of April by the FLA and JNIM, which has since claimed responsibility for several attacks and maintains a partial blockade on the capital, Bamako. Despite this, the head of the military junta, Assimi Goita, insists that the situation remains under control.
The country is currently governed by a military junta that emerged from the coups d'état of August 2020 and May 2021, both led by Goita, today president of transition. Since those events, Bamako has strengthened ties with Russia and has distanced itself from its traditional Western partners, including France, the former colonial power in the region.