On October 22, at least eight people, including children, were killed and 20 others injured in a drone attack during a fair in Mali’s northern Timbuktu region, according to Tuareg rebels.
The Permanent Strategic Framework for the Defence of the People of Azawad (CSP-DPA), a coalition of Tuareg rebels, stated that a Turkish drone was responsible for the strikes, which targeted a local market and nearby civilian homes. The CSP-DPA has accused Mali’s army and its allies of orchestrating the attack.
Mali’s armed forces have yet to comment on the incident.
The Tuareg, an ethnic group native to the Sahara region, have long been fighting for an independent homeland in northern Mali. While they initially launched an insurgency in 2012, the rebellion was later overshadowed by Islamist groups. A peace agreement was signed in 2015, but the CSP-DPA withdrew from peace talks in late 2022.
In July, Tuareg rebels claimed responsibility for an attack on a convoy of Malian soldiers and Russian Wagner Group mercenaries, alleging the deaths of 84 Russians and 47 Malian troops.
