Two days of fighting between the Malian Armed Forces (FAMa) soldiers and rebels of the Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) have rocked northern Mali, with both sides claiming victory after clashes near Aguelhoc.
Violent skirmishes erupted between FAMa and armed elements of the FLA in the Kidal region, with Aguelhoc being the epicenter of the fighting..
The clashes, which took place on June 12 and 13, 2025, have prompted contradictory claims from the warring parties.
According to a statement issued by the Malian army on Friday, the operation was part of a logistics escort mission between Anefis and Aguelhoc.
A military offensive was launched on a rebel group entrenched in Anomalan, some 40 kilometers north of Aguelhoc.
The FAMa claim its troops have neutralized ten enemy combatants during the assault, including fighters under the command of deserter Captain Issouf Ag Bouchara.
The army also reported that an attempted ambush on the same convoy in the early hours of June 13 was successfully repelled with the support of aerial assets, resulting in the destruction of several enemy vehicles and what it described as a “second defeat inflicted on the enemy within 24 hours.”
However, the FLA presented a conflicting narrative. Several accounts linked to the rebel group claimed that the separatists inflicted heavy losses on the Malian army and its Russian allies from Africa Corps, recently deployed to Mali to replace Wagner paramilitaries.
The FLA claimed it had destroyed multiple military vehicles during the skirmishes.
No independent casualty report has been confirmed at this stage, and access to the area remains limited due to ongoing insecurity.
Military authorities, however, have stated that the situation is now “fully under control” and that the convoy is continuing its advance toward Aguelhoc.
AC/sf/lb/as/APA