A coalition of armed groups from northern Mali, a majority population Tuaregsaid in the early hours of Saturday to Sunday that had killed dozens of soldiers and Russian mercenaries of the Wagner Group in a battle near the border with Algeria.

Videos of the lifeless bodies of several white men and Malian soldiers lying on the ground next to destroyed vehicles have been posted on social media. The claim by the coalition of armed groups came after the Malian army issued a statement on Friday evening saying that two soldiers had been killed and 10 wounded in a rebel attack, in which two armoured vehicles and two pickup trucks were also damaged.

The Army has stated that its troops had killed about 20 rebels and destroyed several vehicles. Neither version could be confirmed independently. What is certain is that the Tuareg rebels in Mali have confirmed this Saturday that the Tinzaouten area, located in the Kidal region (northeast) and close to the border with Algeriais still under his control After two days of intense fighting against the Malian army and Russian mercenaries from the Wagner Group, ally of the current military junta in the African country under whose mandate a fragile peace agreement was dissolved.

The Tuareg, now called the Permanent Strategic Framework for Peace, Security and Development (CSP-PSD), have announced that the convoy of the Malian army and Wagner mercenaries, who tried to take the city of Tinzaouten in an operation that began two days ago, “has been completely decimated and neutralized” about 60 kilometers from the town.

The CSP-PSD disputes the account of the Malian military, who yesterday claimed to have caused “big losses“in the ranks of a “terrorist group” following an attack on a patrol in the area on Thursday. The counter-offensive left two soldiers and around twenty suspected Tuaregs dead, according to a statement released Friday by the Malian Armed Forces.

On the other hand, the Tuareg guarantee that “All vehicles were destroyed and enemy troops suffered crushing losses.“The situation is now under the control of the Azawad forces,” the rebels added, referring to the name they give to the areas they have declared as theirs in Mali and Niger, in a statement reported by the Azawad Press and Media Agency on its social network X account.