MOSCOW, August 5. /TASS/. Russia’s Africa Corps fighters defended an encircled strongpoint in Mali for six days until new troops came to relieve them, a helicopter pilot with the call sign Krym told TASS.

"There was such a strongpoint in the town of Anefis, where they (Africa Corps fighters - TASS) were surrounded for about five or six days. "The guys fought very bravely. There were no casualties among our troops, thank God, we held our ground," Krym said.

He added that the garrison was relieved a few days later.

On April 25, 2026, coordinated attacks by radical armed groups targeted several cities in Mali. Minister of Defense and Veterans Affairs Sadio Camara was killed.

The coordinated attacks were carried out by units of the Azawad Liberation Front and Jamaat Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimeen, a group linked to al-Qaeda (a terrorist organization banned in Russia).