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He was at the helm of the Tuareg uprising against the Malian government in 2012 which sought to establish an independent state for the Tuareg people called Azawad.

For many years, the Malian government has been struggling against both Tuareg rebels seeking a breakaway state in the north and jihadist groups linked to Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group.

Ukrainian Special Forces reportedly supplied drones and training to Tuareg rebels that resulted in an ambush, killing 84 Russian mercenaries and 47 Malian soldiers.

Russian military contractors fight alongside the Malian army in its campaign against jihadists and ethnic Tuareg separatists, while they also help to protect the senior leadership of the juntas in Niger and Burkina Faso.

Ansar Dine was one of several Islamist militant groups to exploit an ethnic Tuareg uprising to take over cities in northern Mali.