Tuareg rebels have released approximately 60 Malian soldiers in exchange for a senior commander, according to security sources cited by AFP.
The swap secured the freedom of Inkinane Ag Attaher, a former Malian army officer who defected to become a prominent figure in the Tuareg-led Azawad Liberation Front (FLA). Nigerien security forces arrested Ag Attaher near the Niger-Nigeria border in 2025 on charges of orchestrating drone training, coordinating attacks in Mali, and serving as an international liaison for the group.
“Around 60 soldiers were transported yesterday [Thursday] to Niger to be exchanged for Inkinane Ag Attaher and individuals allegedly linked to JNIM [Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin],” a Malian security source told AFP, referring to the al-Qaeda-affiliated group.
A second security source confirmed that Niger’s government directly oversaw the agreement.
Mohamed El Maouloud Ramadane, an FLA spokesman, welcomed Ag Attaher’s release in a Facebook post, offering “wishes of courage, strength and serenity for the continuation of the struggle.”
The exchange marks the latest in a series of prisoner releases involving captives held in northern Mali by al-Qaeda-linked fighters and Tuareg rebels, including Russian mercenaries. The rebels reported that some of their own fighters held in Malian prisons were also freed.
Sources in Mali told Al Jazeera that Algeria has been mediating for the release of Malian soldiers. On Monday, Prime Minister General Abdoulaye Maiga traveled to Algiers to revive high-level talks after tensions arose over regional security disagreements.
While Bamako publicly refuses to negotiate with groups it designates as terrorists, the ongoing releases indicate that back-channel communication persists amid continued hostilities.
JNIM and the FLA claimed responsibility for coordinated attacks on April 25 targeting Bamako’s airport and other locations, during which Defense Minister Sadio Camara was killed in a bombing at his residence in Kati. The two groups also claimed responsibility for assaults on army positions across Mali on July 4.
General Elisee Jean Dao, chief of staff of Mali’s armed forces, issued a warning to combatants.
“Wherever the enemy is, we will go after them and defeat them, until they lay down their weapons. For those who are Malians, our country has a peace process that allows them to come back. So I want to make that appeal again. It is not too late. The door is still open,” he said.
Al Jazeera correspondent Nicolas Haque reported that fighting continues across the Sahel beyond Mali’s borders, though the prisoner releases and Algeria’s mediation could lead to further soldier releases.
Mali has been mired in civil war since 2012, when a Tuareg separatist rebellion in the north was overtaken by armed campaigns from groups linked to al-Qaeda and ISIL (ISIS). The military has governed since a 2021 coup, pledging to restore order and national unity.
JNIM has expanded its influence since the ruling junta expelled French forces and roughly 15,000 United Nations peacekeepers, turning instead to Russian paramilitaries for security support.
Although the FLA presents itself as a secular nationalist movement seeking independence for Mali’s Azawad region, while JNIM is an al-Qaeda affiliate, the two groups have set aside ideological differences to confront the Malian government.
