BAMAKO - At least 15 people, including children, were killed by drone strikes on Sunday on the town of Tinzaouaten in north Mali, near where the army suffered a heavy blow last month, Tuareg rebels said.

Mali had already carried out air strikes on insurgent targets in and around Tinzaouaten shortly after Tuareg and Islamist fighters killed a large number of Malian soldiers and Russian Wagner mercenaries near the town in July.

The town, located near the Algerian border, came under drone attack again on Sunday, a spokesperson for a rebel coalition known as the Permanent Strategic Framework for Peace, Security and Development (CSP) said.

The strikes hit a civilian home, a pharmacy and other parts of town, Mohamed Elmaouloud Ramadane said via telephone.

Around 15 people are confirmed dead, including children, and the death toll is likely to rise, he added.

Mali's army did not respond to a request for comment.

The fighting near Tinzaouaten in late July could be Wagner's heaviest defeat since it stepped in two years ago to help Mali's junta fight insurgent groups.

Tuareg rebels said they killed at least 84 Wagner mercenaries and 47 Malian soldiers. An al Qaeda affiliate said it had killed 50 Wagner mercenaries and 10 Malian soldiers.

Neither Mali nor Wagner have said how many troops they lost, although Wagner said it suffered heavy losses.

Both Tuareg separatists and jihadist insurgents liked to al Qaeda and Islamic State operate in north Mali.

The country has been grappling with jihadist insurgents since Islamist groups hijacked a Tuareg rebellion in 2012.

Frustrations over authorities' failure to restore security contributed to coups in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger since 2020.

Juntas have subsequently cut ties with Western and regional allies, turning instead to Russia.

The separatists, meanwhile, signed a peace agreement with Mali's government in 2015. But CSP pulled out of talks in 2022.

  - Reuters