Battle for Anefis: What's happening in northern Mali?

On 5 July, FAMa and Africa Corps deployed reinforcements and helicopters from Gao to Anefis to reinforce the military base there and evacuate casualties. However, JNIM and the FLA reportedly routed the convoy carrying reinforcements, downed an Mi-24 helicopter near Tabrichat, about 55km southwest of Anefis, and encircled government forces stationed at the Anefis military base.

Héni Nsaibia, West Africa Senior Analyst at ACLED, said: 

“The ongoing battle for Anefis has become a test of whether the JNIM–FLA alliance can reverse one of the Malian regime's and its Russian partners' most significant military gains since late 2023. If they succeed, it would largely isolate the remaining military base in Aguelhok, leaving it dependent on air resupply and increasing pressure on the government's last foothold in the Kidal region.

“The battle is also becoming increasingly costly for both sides. Compared to the 25 April offensive, which relied on rapid coordinated attacks and hit-and-run tactics, the battle for Anefis has focused on a single strategic objective while combining guerrilla warfare with more conventional tactics. It has evolved into a prolonged confrontation lasting several days, during which both JNIM–FLA and FAMa–Africa Corps have sustained substantial personnel and material losses.

“The campaign also demonstrates how rapidly battlefield tactics are evolving. Alongside repeated ground assaults, both sides have increasingly employed advanced capabilities, including the reported use of suicide car bombs and more sophisticated drone warfare. FAMa and Africa Corps have also lost aerial assets, including a Su-24 aircraft and a helicopter, illustrating both the intensification of the fighting and the rising costs of this war of attrition.”