An entirely different conflict unfolds in Tin Zaouatine, a desert area in Mali’s north-easternmost corner. The same area that had seen an unprecedented defeat of Russian mercenaries ambushed by Tuareg rebels in August 2024 is once again at the center of a developing crisis.

Between March 31 and April 1, a Turkish-made Akinci surveillance drone used by the Malian air force literally crashed out of the sky. Video clips posted on social media showed smoldering rubble dropping and landing in a deserted area.

The Algerian authorities stated that an air defense system along the boundary area intercepted an armed observation drone that had overstepped Algerian skies. Bamako, the capital city of Mali, disagreed, citing that the wreckage was discovered nearly 10 kilometers into Malian airspace.

The historic event has since caused a significant diplomatic rift between the two neighbors. Though it seems neither party is keen on taking the matter further, the crisis has been escalating.

Demonstrations, backlash, and unity

Numerous demonstrators gathered in front of the country’s embassy in Bamako, shortly after Algeria claimed responsibility. “They destroyed the drone on our soil. Enough is enough! We’re here to demonstrate to the world that we support our authorities,” one of the protesters explained, DW reported.

Mali’s junta-led army responded with diplomacy: As part of a coordinated move by its close allies Niger and Burkina Faso — both also junta-governed — all three Sahel Alliance (AES) member states recalled their ambassadors from Algeria. Algiers promptly retaliated. The following day, both Mali and Algeria shut their airspaces to the other’s aircraft.

As reported by DW, although it would have been a simple decision for Burkina Faso to join its ally in solidarity, it could have been a tougher decision for Niger.

“From the Nigerien point of view, this is not a good development, because they have just strengthened their relations with Algeria,”

Ulf Laessing, director of the Sahel program of the German Konrad Adenauer Foundation (KAS), said.

“Algeria has tried to do something for Niger, particularly since relations with Mali are this poor. Algeria’s state oil firm Sonatrach signed a contract in Niger, where Niger benefits economically,”

Laessing said.

Foreign Minister of Mali Abdoulaye Diop blamed Algiers of terrorism backing.

“AES leaders’ council sees the shooting down of Malian military operated drone as hostile against all members of AES and as treacherous action tending in some way to foment terrorism and destabilize the region,”

said Diop. Algeria denied any misconduct over the drone attack and charged Mali of trying to divert blame for its domestic problems. 

“The coup d’etat regime which holds power in Mali is trying in vain to turn our nation into a scapegoat for the failures and misfortunes of which the Malian people are paying the most dearly,”

Algeria’s foreign ministry stated.

Relations between Mali and Algeria have worsened since 2023

Mali and Algeria have a shared history of French colonial domination. Ever since they gained independence in 1960 and 1962 respectively, the relationship between the two nations has had its share of ups and downs. Security along the 1,300-kilometer-long border has also always been a problem. In 2015, following three years of conflict between Mali’s military and northern insurgents, Algeria was able to broker a peace agreement — the Algiers Accords.

Still, security in Northern Mali and the relationship with Algeria have remained tenuous — particularly since the military coups in Mali in 2020 and 2021. During renewed fighting between signatories to the Algiers Accords, allegations of atrocities committed by Malian troops and their new allies, Russian Wagner mercenaries, emerged.

Based on Laessing, things then went from bad to worse later in 2023, with Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune receiving Mahmoud Dicko, a influential imam from the Tomboctou region in Mali, whose popularity makes him a threat according to the country’s military junta.

“This was perceived as a provocation in Bamako. Mali then cancelled the Algiers accords. Algeria responded verbally. This is how the crisis escalated — and due to that, we’ve already been on a level of crisis,” Laessing stated. Malian analyst stated that the diplomatic relations between Mali and Algeria are lacking trust.

“Today, the Malian authorities thoroughly condemn the Algerian authorities’ interference in the treatment of the security crisis in Mali,”

Oula said.

While doing so, Oula also thinks that the rift is of more advantage to Morocco. Rabat has ramped up its presence in the Sahel region in recent years, providing landlocked AES countries with access to sea trade without having to be dependent on ECOWAS nations.