Wagner replaced by Russia's Africa Corp in Mali: diplomatic sources
"Officially, Wagner is no longer present in Mali. But the Africa Corps is stepping up," one diplomatic source in the Sahel region said.
A Telegram account affiliated with Wagner said: "Mission accomplished. PMC Wagner is going home."
Mali's ruling junta, which seized power in coups in 2020 and 2021, broke off ties with former colonial power France and pivoted towards Russia for political and military support.
Wagner, Russia's best-known mercenary group, was disbanded and restructured after its leader Yevgeny Prigozhin died in a mysterious plane crash in August 2023 following a short-lived rebellion against Moscow.
Mali has never officially admitted Wagner's presence, insisting it only worked with Russian instructors.
France withdrew its 2,400 troops from Mali in 2022 after ties with the junta soured and anti-French sentiment surged among the public.
"The Kremlin remains in control," the same diplomatic source added.
"Most of the Wagner personnel in Mali, who are originally from Russia, will be reintegrated into Africa Corps and remain in northern regional capitals and Bamako."
The Africa Corps is another paramilitary group with links to the Kremlin and seen as the successor to the Wagner group. Like Wagner, its mercenaries are active supporting several African governments.
For over three years, Mali had relied on Wagner in its fight against jihadists who have killed thousands across the country.
"Wagner yesterday or Africa Corps today, our point of contact remains the same, it is the central power in Russia, that is to say the Kremlin," a Malian security source said Sunday.
The paramilitary group's brutal methods on the ground in Mali have been regularly denounced by human rights groups.
A UN report accused Mali's army and foreign fighters of executing at least 500 people during a March 2022 anti-jihadist sweep in Moura -- a claim denied by the junta.
Western governments believe the foreign fighters were Wagner mercenaries.
Last April, bodies were discovered near a Malian military camp, days after the army and Wagner paramilitaries arrested dozens of civilians, most from the Fulani community.
Wagner's withdrawal comes amid what the Malian army calls a "resurgence""of jihadist attacks, including two assaults that killed dozens of soldiers and forced troops to abandon a key central base.
A European diplomatic source in the Sahel believes Africa Corps will probably do "much more training of Malian soldiers than Wagner did".
"Although Wagner claims that its operations and support strengthened the Malian army, Africa Corps will need to continue training and support, especially after the recent wave of attacks against the FAMA (Malian Armed Forces)," said Beverly Ochieng, an analyst at the Washington think tank, the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Euronews
10 minutes ago
- Euronews
The PP demands new elections in a mass protest in Madrid
Russia's Defence Ministry said on Sunday that its forces had reached the western edge of the Donetsk region, one of the four provinces Russia illegally annexed in 2022, and that troops were 'developing the offensive' in the neighbouring Dnipropetrovsk region. This would be the first time Russian troops had pushed into the region in the more than three-year-old war. Ukraine has denied the claim. Russia's advance would mark a significant setback for Ukraine's already stretched forces as peace talks remain stalled and Russian troops have made incremental gains elsewhere. Putin's forces also appear to be within a few kilometres of the city of Sumy, three years after Ukraine forced them out of the northern region. One person was killed and another seriously wounded in Russian aerial strikes on the eastern Ukrainian Kharkiv region. These strikes came after Russian attacks targeted the regional capital on Saturday. Regional police in Kharkiv said on Sunday that the death toll from Saturday's attacks had increased to six people. More than two dozen others were wounded. Russia fired a total of 49 exploding drones and decoys and three missiles overnight, Ukraine's air force said Sunday. Forty drones were shot down or electronically jammed. Russia's defence ministry said that its forces shot down 61 Ukrainian drones overnight, including near the capital. Five people were wounded Sunday in a Ukrainian drone attack on a parking lot in Russia's Belgorod region, according to regional Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov. Two people were wounded when a Ukrainian drone attack sparked a fire at a chemical plant in the Tula region, local authorities said. Russian authorities said early Sunday that Vnukovo and Domodedovo airports, two international airports serving Moscow, temporarily suspended flights because of a Ukrainian drone attack. Later in the day, Domodedovo halted flights temporarily for a second time, along with Zhukovsky airport. Thousands of people gathered on Sunday in Madrid's central Plaza de España to protest against the government in a demonstration organised by the Popular Party (PP). Under the slogan 'Mafia or democracy', the PP called on citizens to 'mobilise' against Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez following the scandal surrounding the WhatsApp messages of socialist activist Leire Díez and the alleged cases of corruption plaguing his term in office. "We are here to defend our country and democratic dignity", opposition leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo said in his speech. "Spain is tired, but it has not given up. Today we are here (...) so that you can speak loud and clear to the president who is hiding; here is a country that is not doing so (...) we are not going to remain silent", he added. In conclusion, he called on Sánchez to clear the way for fresh elections to be held. The rally, which began at 11:00 local time, also featured speeches by the president of the Community of Madrid, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, and the mayor of the capital, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, and was attended by former presidents José María Aznar and Mariano Rajoy. According to the Popular Party, some 100,000 people took part in Sunday's protest, although the Government Delegation in Madrid put the number of attendees at around 50,000. On Monday at 17:00, the National Electoral Commission (PKW) will consider erroneously completed protocols in some constituencies at a meeting, PKW member Ryszard Kalisz announced in a post on X. He was referring to the second round of the presidential election. According to the official results of the PKW, the election was won by Karol Nawrocki. The candidate supported by Law and Justice (PiS) won 10,606,877 votes, or 50.89%. He defeated Civic Coalition (KO) candidate Rafal Trzaskowski, who got the vote from 10,237,286 people in the second round, or 49.11%. Ultimately, the validity of the presidential election is decided by the Supreme Court on the basis of the report presented by the PKW and after considering protests. Certain entities, including voters, can submit written protests until 16 June. The Supreme Court has received 21 election protests, Monika Drwal of the Supreme Court press team reported on Friday. A petition for a recount of the votes is being collected online. To date, the petition has collected more than 160,000 signatures. "Given the extremely small difference of 369,591 votes between the candidates in the last presidential election, the very high number of 189,000 invalid votes, as well as the numerous reports of irregularities in the work of the electoral commissions, we feel obliged to call for a recount of all votes cast," wrote the authors of the petition. - wrote the authors of the petition. Signals of irregularities appeared, among others, in Minsk Mazowiecki. The authorities there reported that the results of two candidates had been swapped in one of the commissions. The chairman of the commission admitted that he had made a mistake in the minutes. A similar incident occurred in Krakow, specifically at PEC number 95 on Stawowa Street. The District Election Commission in Krakow is investigating the matter. The case has been addressed by the Polish authorities. Prime Minister Donald Tusk tried to tone down the mood of some internet users who suggested that the elections had been rigged. "Every reported case of irregularities in vote counting is checked and analysed. Possible falsifications are being investigated and will be punished. Protests will go to the Supreme Court. I understand emotions, but assuming in advance that the elections have been rigged does not serve the Polish state". - Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk wrote in a post on the X platform. The head of the office of the incumbent Polish president, Małgorzata Paprocka, commented on the matter on Saturday. Although she admitted that there had been an error in one of the commissions in counting the votes, she added in an interview with Trwam TV that she was concerned about attempts to question the election results. "The myth of falsifying the election result, undermining the mandate of the president, trying to antagonise the public, trying to introduce such unrest is an absolutely scandalous thing," - she said during the interview. "Of course such a mistake should not have happened, of course it should be clarified, but it has no bearing," - Paprocka assessed.
France 24
an hour ago
- France 24
Israel intercepts Gaza-bound aid flotilla with Greta Thunberg, activists say
The organisers of a Gaza-bound aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg and other activists said Israeli forces intercepted the vessel on Monday, after Israel vowed to prevent it from reaching the Palestinian territory. The Madleen aimed to deliver aid and challenge Israel's naval blockade of Gaza, which has been in place since before the Israel-Hamas war. "Connection has been lost on the 'Madleen'. Israeli army have boarded the vessel," the Freedom Flotilla Coalition posted on Telegram, adding that the passengers had been "kidnapped" by Israeli forces. AFP lost contact with the activists on board. Mahmud Abu-Odeh, a Germany-based press officer with the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, told AFP that "the activists seemed to be arrested". Israel had vowed to prevent the ship from reaching Gaza. The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the Navy had directed the boat to change course as it approached "a restricted area". About an hour later, it said the boat was being towed to Israeli shores. "The passengers are expected to return to their home countries," the ministry wrote on social media. "The tiny amount of aid that was on the yacht and not consumed by the 'celebrities' will be transferred to Gaza through real humanitarian channels," the ministry added.
LeMonde
3 hours ago
- LeMonde
World leaders urged to step up for overexploited oceans
World leaders arrived in the French Riviera on Sunday, June 8, ahead of a high-level summit on ocean conservation, as nations face pressure to adopt tougher stances on overfishing, pollution and marine protection. The United Nations has sounded the alarm over an oceans "emergency" and leaders gathering in Nice will be called upon to commit money and stronger protections for the seas. The UN Ocean Conference, starting Monday, is seeking to turn a corner as nations feud over deep-sea mining, plastic litter and exploitative fishing, against a backdrop of wider geopolitical tensions. "We have a duty to mobilize, because the science is clear and the facts are there," said French President Emmanuel Macron in Monaco on Sunday, where he attended a pre-conference event on ocean finance. Some 60 heads of state and government are expected in Nice, including Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and his Argentine counterpart Javier Milei. "The planet can no longer tolerate broken promises," said Lula on Sunday. "Either we act, or the planet is in danger." 'No excuses' Later Sunday, Macron was to arrive in Nice from Monaco and tour the conference venue, made to look like the cavernous belly of a whale. In the evening, he was to host leaders for a dinner of Mediterranean fish. France has deployed 5,000 police to Nice for the five-day summit where scientists, business leaders and environmental activists were also to attend in big numbers. A strong turnout was expected from Pacific Island nations, whose delegations will urge financial aid to combat rising seas, marine trash and the plunder of fish stocks. The United States under President Donald Trump − whose recent push to fast-track seabed mining in international waters sparked global outrage − was not expected to send a delegation. Conservationists have warned that the summit, which will not produce a legally binding agreement, risks being a talkfest unless leaders come up with concrete proposals to restore marine health. On Saturday, Macron said France would restrict bottom trawling − a destructive fishing method that indiscriminately scrapes the ocean floor − in some of its marine protected areas. Britain also said it would announce plans looking to extend a ban on bottom trawling to more than half of protected English seas. Environmental groups said such steps were good but do not go far enough. Pay up Nations will also face calls to cough up the missing finances to protect 30% of the world's oceans by 2030, a target that had been agreed upon by nearly 200 countries in 2022. So far, only around 8% of oceans are designated marine conservation zones and even less are considered truly protected. Greenpeace says at this rate, it could take another 82 years to reach the 30% goal. Another summit priority will be inching towards the numbers required to ratify a global treaty on harmful fishing subsidies, and another on protecting the high seas beyond national control. France is also spearheading a push in Nice to build support for a moratorium on deep-sea mining ahead of a closely-watched meeting of the International Seabed Authority in July.
