Battle of Ndaki

Battle of Ndaki
	Part of Mali War
Date	October 16–17, 2018
Location	Forest near Ndaki, Gao Region, Mali
Result	Franco-Malian victory
Belligerents
Mali; France	Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin Katibat 3A;
Commanders and leaders
Unknown	Almansour Ag Alkassam
Strength
Several dozen; 2 Tiger helicopters, 2 Mirage planes	50 men
Casualties and losses
2 injured; None	1 killed

Between October 16 and 17, 2018, joint Franco-Malian forces clashed with Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin in a forest near Ndaki, Mali.

Prelude

In 2017, five jihadist groups - Ansar Dine, Al-Mourabitoun, Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa, Katibat Macina, and Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb - that initially rebelled against the Malian government amidst the Tuareg rebellion in 2012, merged to form Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin. JNIM grew in power in late 2017, and soon intensified operations in southern Gao Region and Mopti Region.

The Ndaki region is considered a hotspot for Katibat Macina activity, in particular Katibat 3A, named for their leader Almansour Ag Alkassam.^[2]^[3]

Battle

A skirmish broke out between joint Franco-Malian forces in a forest near Ndaki on October 16. Around fifty jihadists attackd Malian forces in the forest from two sides.^[3] Malian forces alerted nearby French forces in Operation Barkhane, who sent air support.^[4] The French helicopters came under small arms fire from the militants, and the helicopter subsequently responded.^[4] Ground troops were soon deployed, and the clashes continued into October 17. Patrick Steiger, spokesman for the French Armed Forces, stated that "tenacity of the terrorists...suggested that it was either a site important to them or someone important was present."^[5]^[4] That leader was likely Alkassam.^[5]

JNIM abandoned their camp on October 17, after which Malian and French forces seized the site.^[4]

Aftermath

Two Malian soldiers were injured in the clashes, and one jihadist was killed. Steiger claimed that other wounded or killed jihadists were likely taken away by Katiba 3A overnight.^[3]^[4]

References

^ https://www.rfi.fr/fr/afrique/20181018-mali-accrochage-le-nord-entre-armee-presumes-jihadistes
^ "AQIM emir confirms death of jihadist commander in Mali | FDD's Long War Journal". www.longwarjournal.org. 2018-12-12. Retrieved 2023-10-13.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Mali: accrochage dans le Nord entre l'armée et des présumés jihadistes". RFI (in French). 2018-10-18. Retrieved 2023-10-13.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e "Au Mali, intervention de la force " Barkhane " lors de combats entre l'armée et des djihadistes". Le Monde.fr (in French). 2018-10-18. Retrieved 2023-10-13.
^ ^a ^b "Le chef de la faction Al-Mansour Ag Alkassim visé dans un raid de Barkhane". RFI (in French). 2018-11-15. Retrieved 2023-10-13.

[1] ttps://www.rfi.fr/fr/afrique/20181018-mali-accrochage-le-nord-entre-armee-presumes-jihadistes

[2] "AQIM emir confirms death of jihadist commander in Mali | FDD's Long War Journal". www.longwarjournal.org. 2018-12-12. Retrieved 2023-10-13.

[:0-3] "Mali: accrochage dans le Nord entre l'armée et des présumés jihadistes". RFI (in French). 2018-10-18. Retrieved 2023-10-13.

[:1-4] "Au Mali, intervention de la force " Barkhane " lors de combats entre l'armée et des djihadistes". Le Monde.fr (in French). 2018-10-18. Retrieved 2023-10-13.

[:2-5] "Le chef de la faction Al-Mansour Ag Alkassim visé dans un raid de Barkhane". RFI (in French). 2018-11-15. Retrieved 2023-10-13.

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