A military convoy transporting Malian troops and members of Russia’s paramilitary Africa Corps came under attack in northern Mali on Thursday, with Tuareg-led separatist fighters claiming responsibility for the assault. The incident comes amid escalating clashes between Mali’s armed forces, Russian-backed units and rebel groups following a major operation in April by Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal Muslimin (JNIM), an Al Qaeda-linked organization, together with the Tuareg-led Azawad Liberation Front (FLA).

Mali’s battle for Anefis has become a test of Russia’s grip on the Sahel, as rebels encircle an army base and down a military helicopter.

BAMAKO: Tuareg separatists and their militant allies attacked a convoy of Russian mercenaries and Malian soldiers Thursday morning, as they traveled to assist cohorts holed up at…