Our mission is complete… The Russian Wagner Group announces its withdrawal from Mali!
The Russian Wagner Group announced on Friday the end of its mission in Mali, without providing any explanation for the decision, which comes amid a series of attacks by armed groups in several regions of the country.
The Russian group posted a video on its main Telegram channel announcing the “completion of its mission in Mali and its withdrawal after more than three years” of presence in the country.
The group stated that it had “eliminated thousands of terrorists,” recaptured “major cities such as Gao, Timbuktu, Anefis, and Kidal,” and that “the area of land under the control of the Malian official government had doubled”.
In a statement published by the Russian news agency Sputnik, Wagner explained that its fighters “fought side by side with the Malian people against terrorism for three and a half years,” and that they helped “local citizens build a strong, disciplined army capable of defending their land”.
The Malian government has yet to issue an official statement regarding Wagner’s withdrawal, which comes amid a tense security situation resulting from attacks by the Extremist JNIM Group, some of which have reached the capital, Bamako.
The Wagner Group was founded by Kremlin ally Yevgeny Prigozhin, and continued its activities in Mali after his death in a plane crash in Russia in August 2023, shortly after his return from a tour of Africa.
According to a report issued by the European Council on Foreign Relations (an international research institution) on December 2, 2021, titled “Russia and the Wagner Group in Mali: How European Concerns Weaken Union Policies?”, the Malian government pays the group “€10 million per month”.
The number of Wagner forces in Mali exceeds 1,000, and their missions include protecting official figures, providing security advice, and confronting armed groups.
An investigative report published by the New York Times in November 2024 indicates that Wagner fighters suffered heavy losses in a battle alongside the Malian army against Azawad fighters in the Tinzaouatine region near the Algerian border in July of the same year.
According to an analysis of the clips on which the report is based, at least 46 Russian mercenaries and 24 Malian soldiers were confirmed killed.
The report stated that “Wagner’s weaknesses were exposed during the disastrous battle,” and that this “had repercussions for its standing and credibility with the Malian army”.
