Russia’s Wagner mercenary group revealed Friday it had wrapped up operations in Mali where it assisted the country’s military leaders against Islamic extremist forces.
“PMC Wagner completed its main mission in Mali,” the group said in a statement on its official Telegram channel. “PMC Wagner is returning home.”
The West African nation has endured violent jihadist and rebel campaigns for over a decade starting in 2012. Military officers overthrew the government in 2020 and pivoted toward Moscow for aid after severing partnerships with Paris and Western nations.
Wagner released footage alleging Western armies had been “methodically pilfering” Mali’s natural wealth and boasted Russian operatives brought “the best weapons and the most advanced military technology.” The mercenary outfit faces its own charges of profiting from Mali’s gold mining sector as compensation for military operations.
“We helped local patriots create a strong and disciplined army capable of defending their land. All regional capitals have returned to the control of the legitimate authorities,” the group said.
“We’ve killed thousands of militants and their commanders who have been terrorizing civilians for years,” it claimed.
The announcement omitted Wagner’s battlefield defeats, notably a devastating ambush by Tuareg fighters against a Russian column in July 2023 in Mali’s north. Armed violence remains widespread across the territory.
International watchdog organizations and security researchers frequently condemn Wagner operatives and Malian forces for civilian atrocities. Intelligence estimates suggested up to 1,500 Russian contractors were deployed in Mali as of March, Al Jazeera reported.
Wagner has dispatched mercenaries to Ukraine’s battlefields alongside conflicts throughout the Middle East and various African territories.
Moscow’s defense apparatus assumed control of Wagner’s global missions after group founder Yevgeny Prigozhin perished in a plane disaster that followed his botched mutiny against Russian leadership two years ago.
