Written By Lisa Murimi
A commander in the Russian mercenary group Africa Corps has been killed in Mali following an attack by rebel fighters during a sandstorm, the group announced.
The West African state’s military regime had enlisted the notorious Wagner group in 2021 to combat jihadist and separatist forces.
The Russian outfit, now rebranded as Africa Corps, reported joining Mali’s military in “fierce battles” against separatist rebels and jihadist militants last week.
However, the separatists launched a significant attack, resulting in the deaths of an estimated 20 to 50 mercenaries, sources close to Africa Corps told the BBC. Russian military bloggers corroborated this, reporting at least 20 deaths near the north-eastern town of Tinzaouaten.
In an official statement on Telegram, Africa Corps confirmed suffering “losses,” including the death of commander Sergei Shevchenko. The mercenaries initially “destroyed most of the Islamists and put the rest to flight,” the statement said.
However, a subsequent sandstorm allowed the radicals to regroup and increase their numbers to 1,000 fighters.
The Permanent Strategic Framework for Peace, Security, and Development (CSP-PSD), a Tuareg-dominated separatist group, claimed responsibility for the attack.
CSP-PSD’s spokesperson told AFP that their forces dealt a “decisive blow” to enemy columns, capturing prisoners and damaging or capturing significant equipment and weapons.
Video footage shared by the rebel group purportedly shows numerous white men in military fatigues lying motionless on a sandy plain, and another video shows mostly black men wearing blindfolds with their hands tied behind their backs. The BBC has not verified the authenticity of the videos.
Jamaat Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), an al-Qaeda affiliate, also claimed responsibility for the ambush, stating they killed 50 Russian mercenaries in a “complex ambush.”
Mali’s central government lost control of much of the north over a decade ago following a Tuareg rebellion demanding a separate state, further complicated by the involvement of Islamist militants.
The military seized power in coups in 2020 and 2021, citing the government’s failure to address the unrest.
The new junta shifted alliances from France to Russia, bringing in the Wagner group, which was later replaced by Africa Corps after a mutiny by Wagner’s leader Yevgeny Prigozhin.
