In Mali, the situation remains calm in Anefis, a locality invested on October 7, 2023 by the Malian army and surrounded by the rebels of the Permanent Strategic Framework (CSP). Malian soldiers and their Russian auxiliaries want to recover the UN bases located in the Kidal region and which Minusma must leave soon as part of its withdrawal from the country. What the CSP rebels consider a violation of the peace agreement. The UN mission finds itself in some way between the two belligerents, and faces accusations of a “hidden agenda” which it denies.
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The initial schedule provided that, at Mali, the Blue Helmets leave the Aguelhoc and Tessalit bases in September. This is still not the case and the Malian army launched a vast operation more than a week ago aimed at taking over these camps.
The CSP rebels also accuse the UN mission of postponing the deadline for their departure to favor the Malian forces and their Wagner auxiliaries.
“ The only agenda is to leave Mali in accordance with the plans that are known »
Fati Kaba, spokesperson for Minusma, responds to these accusations: “ We have a schedule to follow and we are in contact with all parties involved to ensure the safety of our convoys. As far as Aguelhoc and Tessalit are concerned, we remain on schedule; we must begin disengagement from mid-October. There is no hidden agenda. The only agenda is to leave Mali in accordance with the plans which are known and shared with all parties. »
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The arrival of Malian soldiers in Aguelhoc, Tessalit and Kidal – the departure of Minusma from this town, stronghold of the CSP rebels, is planned for mid-November – is considered a legitimate reconquest of national territory by the Malian authorities of transition, and as a violation of the peace agreement by the armed groups of the CSP, who have controlled these localities since the 2014 ceasefire and the 2015 peace agreement.
According to them, the occupation of these camps should therefore have been the subject of discussions within the framework of the peace agreement.
In this context, Fati Kaba recalls the rules of UN disengagement: “ The restitution is based on the principle of returning these rights to the Malian State, and we are doing this with civilian representatives of the Malian State. Once returned to the Malian civil authorities, the Malian State decides on the allocation of the land that has been left. »
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