Thousands of residents of Kidal mostly Touareg and Arabs have fled to the border with Algeria – most are women and children following the capture of the town of Kidal by the Malian army.

Reports claim the army supported by Russian military group Wagner used drone strikes on targets in and around Kidal before moving in – and rights groups believe Mali’s army have committed war crimes.

Kidal is a Tuareg separatist stronghold that had not been under central government control for more than a decade.

The town was retaken after forces from the UN Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) left their camp in Kidal October 31st as part of an agreement to withdraw from the country by the end of the year.

The withdrawal has exacerbated tensions in the north of the country, which is contested by the central government, Tuareg separatist and different armed groups.

Aljazeera.