Mali crisis: Who are the key leaders to know about?

Key Points:

• Armed violence in Mali has escalated sharply after an al-Qaeda-linked group allied with Tuareg separatists attacked multiple military bases and seized the northern city of Kidal, intensifying the country's longstanding security crisis.
• Malian Defence Minister Sadio Camara was assassinated in Kati, near the capital Bamako, amid armed groups announcing a siege on the capital, marking a significant escalation in conflict.
• Mali's military government, led by Colonel Assimi Goita since two coups in 2020 and 2021, has distanced itself from France and regional blocs, relying heavily on Russian mercenaries from the Wagner Group and later the Russian Defence Ministry’s Africa Corps for security support.
• The Tuareg separatist group Liberation Front for Azawad (FLA) controls Kidal and aims to establish an independent Azawad state, often collaborating with jihadist groups like JNIM, which is led by Iyad Ag Ghaly and has thousands of fighters.
• Russian Africa Corps commanders, including Major-Generals Andrey Averyanov and Vladimir Selivyorstov, play key roles in supporting Mali’s military, while ideological armed groups such as JNIM and ISIL affiliates continue to fuel instability in northern and central Mali.