April 27 (UPI) -- Russian forces began withdrawing from the city of Kidal, Mali, on Monday after a weekend of attacks across the country by Al-Qaeda-linked militants.
Mali Defense Minister Gen. Sadio Camara, is among those who were killed in the attacks, the Malian government announced on Sunday. Spokesman Issa Ousmane Coulibaly said Camara was killed in a suicide bombing.
The West African country had several cities seized in a coordinated attack over the weekend, led by the group Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin, or JNIM. The attacks also targeted the capital city Bamako and the home of Mali President Assimi Goïta.
JNIM claims that it has taken "complete control" of the country.
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