Kidal under rebel control targeted by malian army strikes

At least four airstrikes rocked Kidal in the early hours of Thursday, leaving behind significant material damage, according to a local witness who spoke on condition of anonymity. One strike destroyed a residential building near a former marketplace, while another left a deep crater in the expansive courtyard of the regional governor’s office—a facility seized by the Front de Libération de l’Azawad (FLA) on April 25 and 26. The FLA operates in coordination with the Jamaat Nusrat al-Islam wal Muslimin (JNIM), the al-Qaeda-affiliated coalition led by Iyad Ag Ghaly.

“We are targeting specific objectives,” stated a Malian army officer at the operational command center in Mopti. “We have a clear strategy in place. Strikes will intensify in the coming days.”

Uncertainty grips the region

Kidal, a pivotal city in northern Mali, remained eerily quiet on Thursday morning with minimal vehicular movement, the witness noted. Many residents reportedly fled under cover of darkness, he added.

The country’s security landscape has grown increasingly volatile following unprecedented coordinated attacks by JNIM jihadists and the FLA rebel alliance against strategic positions held by the Bamako-based military junta.

FLA advances toward major northern cities

During the recent offensive, the FLA—an independence-seeking movement primarily composed of Tuareg fighters alongside Arab communities—seized control of Kidal, the largest city in northern Mali. The group claims sovereignty over the Azawad region, a vast swath of northern Mali encompassing the administrative areas of Kidal, Gao, Ménaka, and Tombouctou.

Tuareg communities have waged armed struggles for decades, citing systemic marginalization as a key grievance, with Kidal emerging as a focal point of their resistance movements.