Armed group reports killing of four Russian Wagner members in Mali

An al-Qaeda-linked group has announced the killing of four mercenaries from the Russian private security group Wagner in an ambush in central Mali, according to SITE, a website that tracks extremist Islamist movements. A statement released by the Jamaat Nusrat al-Islam wa al-Muslimeen propaganda arm, which is the main alliance in the Sahel region, said the group ambushed Wagner soldiers on Saturday as they were riding motorcycles in the Bandiagara region, heading from the village of Dagalo. to the mountains. SITE confirmed the authenticity of the statement. According to the statement, members of the group killed four Wagnerians, while the rest fled. Two local elected officials confirmed the incident to AFP, while a senior Malian army official declined to confirm or deny it: “Four Russians were killed over the weekend by gunmen near Bandiagara,” one local official, who asked not to be named, told AFP.