Also known as: Russia's Africa Corps
Russian paramilitary force operating in West African countries including Mali and Niger to support military governments against insurgent groups.
Verbatim sentences from the source article.
The Standard
… Earlier this week various sources reported that at least 50 Mali soldiers and five mercenaries from Russia's Africa Corps had been killed, with some placing the death toll as high as 60 to 80 soldiers.The strategic Dioura army base in the centre of the country remains abandoned e …
Death toll passes 100 soldiers in Mali attack last week: sourcesCitizen Digital
… The military government, which in recent years has cut ties with the West and grown close to Moscow, is using Russia's Africa Corps paramilitary fighters for help in battling the insurgents. …
Generative AI a new tool in Mali's information war: studyThe Standard
Audio By VocalizeGeneral Abdourahmane Tchiani in Niamey, Niger, on July 28, 2023. [VOA] The pivotal role played by Russia's Africa Corps mercenaries in putting down a mutiny in Niger at the weekend has revealed just how dependent on Moscow the west African country's ruling junta …
Thwarted Niger mutiny exposes junta's Russia dependenceCitizen Digital
… Paramilitaries from Russia's Africa Corps and a contingent of Malian soldiers remained entrenched in the camp, which they continued to defend. …
Mali army, Russian paramilitary allies retake northern townCitizen Digital
… "These coordinated attacks between JNIM and FLA are intended to overwhelm the Malian army and Africa Corps, and they appear to be successful at that", Rida Lyammouri, a senior fellow at the Moroccan think tank Policy Center for the New South (PCNS), told AFP. …
Rebels pressure Mali's junta as it struggles for controlCitizen Digital
… "These coordinated attacks between JNIM and FLA are intended to overwhelm the Malian army and Africa Corps, and they appear to be successful at that", Rida Lyammouri, a senior fellow at the Moroccan think tank Policy Center for the New South (PCNS), told AFP. …
Rebels pressure Mali's junta as it struggles for controlThe Standard
… The deal potentially allows the Russian paramilitary Africa Corps -- the successor to the Wagner mercenary group -- to expand within mineral-rich Togo.Russia, like France, also has eyes on the strategic port of Lome, the deepest in west Africa. …
France, Russia jostle for influence in TogoCitizen Digital
… Since expelling French and U.N. troops, Mali has leaned heavily on Moscow for military support, initially from Wagner and more recently with troops from Africa Corps, a force more closely linked to the Russian government. …
Mali at risk of splintering after jihadi and separatist attacksCapital News
… Shortly after these reports, Ramadane said: “An agreement was reached between the Azawad forces and the Russian elements of the Africa Corps with a view to ensuring their secure withdrawal from the fighting.” In later updates, he said they were “permanently withdrawing from Kidal …
Mali defence minister killed as country hit by wave of rebel attacksThe Standard
… Russia's Wagner Group, which had been fighting with Malian forces against jihadists since 2021, announced the end of its mission in June 2025, and has become the Africa Corps, an organisation under the direct control of the Russian defence ministry. …
Gunfire in Mali as army battles 'terrorist groups'At least 100 soldiers were killed in a jihadist attack on the Dioura military base in Mali on September 10, one of the deadliest assaults on the Malian army since the conflict began nearly 15 years ago. Multiple sources report over 80 soldiers were taken prisoner, the camp was abandoned, and its weaponry removed.
19 September 2026 · The Standard →
At least 100 soldiers were killed in a jihadist attack on the Dioura military base in Mali on September 10, one of the deadliest assaults on the Malian army since the conflict began nearly 15 years ago. Multiple sources report over 80 soldiers were taken prisoner, the camp was abandoned, and its weaponry removed.
19 September 2026 · The Standard →
A Timbuktu Institute study found that generative AI is increasingly being used to "amplify and accelerate" existing faultlines in Mali's security crisis, with conflict factions mastering the technology to varying degrees and the country serving as an "open-air laboratory" for AI's use in warfare.
10 September 2026 · Citizen Digital →
Russian mercenaries from the Africa Corps played a decisive role in helping Niger's military government suppress a mutiny over the weekend in the capital Niamey, exposing the junta's dependence on Moscow at odds with its stated goal of reclaiming national sovereignty from foreign powers.
1 September 2026 · The Standard →
Mali's army and Russian paramilitary Africa Corps forces regained control of the northern town of Anefis after fighting against Al-Qaeda-linked jihadists and Tuareg separatists for nearly a week. Reinforcements arrived Thursday evening and retook the town, located about 100 kilometres from the rebel-controlled city of Kidal.
11 July 2026 · Citizen Digital →
Al-Qaeda-linked JNIM jihadists and Tuareg FLA separatists launched coordinated assaults across Mali on Saturday, targeting key northern and central towns as well as a major prison south of the capital, demonstrating the junta's difficulty in controlling the vast Sahel nation.
5 July 2026 · Citizen Digital →
Following a major offensive two months prior, Al-Qaeda-linked JNIM jihadists and Tuareg FLA separatists carried out coordinated assaults across Mali on Saturday, attacking key towns in the north and centre and one of the country's largest prisons south of the capital. The attacks demonstrate the junta's difficulty in controlling the vast Sahel nation and suggest it is increasingly threatened and isolated in Bamako and the garrison stronghold of Kati.
5 July 2026 · Citizen Digital →
France sent its foreign minister to Togo in April—the first such visit in 24 years—as part of an effort to counter Russia's growing influence in the west African country. In 2025, Moscow signed an agreement with Togo to send military instructors, ships, and aircraft, potentially allowing the Russian paramilitary Africa Corps to expand within the mineral-rich nation.
20 May 2026 · The Standard →
In simultaneous attacks on Saturday, an alliance of al Qaeda-linked militants and Tuareg separatist rebels killed Mali's defence minister, struck the capital's airport, and drove Russian soldiers from a desert town over a thousand kilometres away, demonstrating unprecedented coordination across multiple sites around Bamako and at least three towns across the country.
28 April 2026 · Citizen Digital →
Mali's defence minister Sadio Camara was killed in an apparent suicide truck bombing on his residence near the capital Bamako, as part of a wave of coordinated attacks by jihadist militants and separatists across the country. The attack, launched by militants affiliated with al-Qaeda, also killed at least three family members.
27 April 2026 · Capital News →
The army in junta-ruled Mali on Saturday battled "terrorist groups" it said had launched attacks across the country, with fighting reported in the capital Bamako and other key cities including Gao, Kidal and Sevare. Mali has faced more than a decade of jihadist conflict and security turmoil linked to Al-Qaeda and Islamic State affiliates.
25 April 2026 · The Standard →