Azawad fighters target Malian army and Africa Corps positions in Aguelhok following a series of prisoner exchanges
Fighting has resumed in northern Mali after an informal pause linked to prisoner exchanges, with Azawad rebels launching a fresh attack on a strategic military position in the Kidal region.
The Azawad Liberation Front targeted positions held by the Malian army and members of Russia’s Africa Corps in Aguelhok using two drones and mortar fire, according to field sources.
The sources reported damage at the targeted sites, although no independently verified casualty figures were immediately available.
Aguelhok, together with the town of Anefis, is among the Malian army’s most important remaining military positions in the Kidal region.
The attack came two days after a prominent Azawad commander, Inkinan Ag Taher, was released in a prisoner exchange. Residents of Tinzaouaten gave him a celebratory welcome following his release on Friday.
Ag Taher had spent 147 days in detention in Niger after being arrested while travelling on April 3, 2025. His release reportedly formed part of an exchange involving 62 Malian soldiers who were handed over to Nigerien authorities.
The successive exchanges had produced an undeclared lull in fighting between Mali’s military government and armed groups operating across the north. The latest attack suggests that pause has ended.
Russia, meanwhile, appears to be reorganising its deployment in northern Mali rather than withdrawing altogether. Local reports in July suggested Russian personnel had abandoned several forward positions, but the Sahel-focused Eakad platform said Moscow had instead reinforced its bases and expanded supply routes by land and air.
At the end of July, Azawad forces attempted unsuccessfully to encircle the military base at Anefis. Bamako, supported by the Africa Corps, deployed substantial reinforcements and large supply convoys to break the siege.
Several of those convoys were reportedly caught in deadly ambushes. Rebel groups have increasingly relied on roadside bombs and hit-and-run attacks, making the routes supplying Aguelhok and Anefis more dangerous and costly to maintain.
Despite continued clashes, prisoner exchanges have accelerated in recent weeks.
On August 23, 22 Malian soldiers were released in an exchange with the Azawad Liberation Front. In return, Malian authorities freed eight Azawad fighters.
Another 82 Malian soldiers, captured during attacks on April 25, were released on August 13. Three days later, six wounded soldiers were handed to the International Committee of the Red Cross for evacuation to Gao.
Those releases were followed by the freeing of two former Wagner fighters who had been held since July 2024.
The exchanges illustrate the complicated relationship between Mali’s military government, led by Assimi Goita, and the armed movements confronting it in the north. Although they remain enemies on the battlefield, indirect channels of communication appear to remain open and capable of facilitating negotiated releases.
Bamako continues to face mounting security pressure as armed groups expand attacks beyond their traditional northern strongholds. Major offensives in April and July reportedly targeted military facilities and resulted in the loss of several bases, further exposing the government’s difficulties in securing remote parts of the country.