UN Exit: Rebel Group Claim Control Over Kigal

A rebel group in Mali named Tuareg, on Tuesday, 31st October have said to have taken over a base in the northern city of Kidal vacated by the UN peacekeepers 

The UN mission in Mali, Minusma, said it ended its presence in Kidal in a hurry after its last convoy of peacekeepers suffered two explosive attacks on the way to Gao, another key town in the north.

The Tuareg coalition claimed victory on social media, saying it was in control of the Kidal base.

Since the end of August, northern Mali has been the scene of renewed hostilities against the army, in a context of rivalry for control of the territory. This resurgence coincides with the withdrawal of the UN mission, pushed out by the junta in power since 2020. The separatist groups, which had earlier agreed to a ceasefire with authorities, have recently resumed hostilities in the area. They oppose peacekeepers handing over their camps to the Malian army.

This resurgence is juxtaposed with persistent violence in the center and jihadist expansion to the north and east .

It was the third and last camp to be evacuated by the mission in the Kidal region, which has been hit by jihadist and separatist violence with two other camps at Tessalit and Aguelhok.

Mali's military government has earlier demanded that the UN force leave the country by the end of the year, saying its decade-long mission against Islamist militants had failed.

A local official told AFP that the rebels occupied the camp immediately after it was vacated by the UN mission.