Seven mercenaries from Russia’s Wagner private military contractor group killed

Mali: According to a Reuters report quoting the SITE Intelligence firm, an assault in central Mali killed at least seven mercenaries from Russia’s Wagner private military contractor firm.

An al-Qaeda offshoot in North Africa claimed responsibility for the attack, underscoring the unstable security environment in the area.

Wagner soldiers are stationed in Mali to assist the military junta, and this event highlights the ongoing risks they face there, according to Reuters.

The organization has been fighting many insurgencies in the Sahel, an area where Islamist terrorist violence is on the rise.

Wagner sustained significant losses in July in battles with Islamist and Tuareg rebel groups close to Mali’s Algerian border. According to Reuters, the encounter demonstrated how dangerous it is for mercenaries operating under the control of military-led regimes in West Africa.

The most recent incident coincides with Mali’s increasing instability, and Wagner’s presence has come under fire for allegedly escalating the war and deteriorating Sahelian security.