Kidal | Malian Armed Forces and allied GATIA forces return to the historic rebel stronghold
In a video report, Al-Sahel follows the return of the Malian Armed Forces, alongside allied GATIA forces, to Kidal on 6 October 2026, after the Azawad Liberation Front withdrew from the town without direct fighting.
The Malian Armed Forces returned to Kidal, the historic rebel stronghold in the north of the country, on 6 October 2026, in a column that included allied forces from GATIA (the Imghad Tuareg Self-Defence Group and Allies) and the Movement for the Salvation of Azawad (MSA), with support from Russia's Africa Corps, according to the Malian authorities and concurring sources.
The forces entered the town without direct fighting after the Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) withdrew. The FLA called it a "strategic and controlled" withdrawal intended to preserve its capabilities, and attributed it to pressure from air strikes by the Malian army and its partners.
Background
Kidal had slipped out of state control on 25 April 2026, after an attack by an alliance of the FLA and the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM). The Malian army's information and public relations directorate described the return to the town as one of the most important developments of the period.
On 10 and 11 October, the Chief of the General Staff led a mission to Kidal to prepare the gradual return of residents, the administration and basic services to a town that sources described as almost deserted.
Operations toll
According to figures announced by the Malian army at a press conference, its operations between May and 20 October 2026 resulted in:
- more than 4,880 members of armed groups neutralised;
- 162 bases destroyed;
- 315 pickup vehicles and about 1,300 motorcycles destroyed.
These figures could not be independently verified.
The challenge ahead
Analysts say the real test is whether the army and its allies can hold the town and its surroundings and secure the Gao – Anefis – Kidal supply road, which remains under threat; forces stationed in Kidal are expected to rely mainly on air resupply in the coming months.
Footage shows operations by the Malian Armed Forces.
Music: "Five Armies" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com), licensed under CC BY 4.0.
Comments (0)