Bellingcat has geolocated footage exhibiting Shahed-136 kind kamikaze drones in operation in Mali.
Defence Weblog and France 24 beforehand printed stories that these drones have been being deployed on the battlefield in northern Mali. However Bellingcat and Jeune Afrique subsequently verified two current strikes utilizing geolocation, satellite tv for pc imagery and professional evaluation to supply among the clearest open-source proof thus far documenting their deployment.
The 2 strikes happened within the villages of Inafarak on July 12 and Talahandak on July 17. Whereas the accessible proof doesn’t enable the precise variant to be recognized, consultants advised Bellingcat it’s fairly seemingly the drones have been manufactured in Russia given the deployment of the Kremlin-controlled Africa Corps group and the broader sample of Russian navy help to Mali.
Leo Jarry, a drone professional with Tungsten Methods, advised Bellingcat: “If the drones are Russian manufactured, they characterize a visual demonstration of Russian help for Mali.”
Stories that Russian drones had been utilized in Mali first emerged in Might, when Defence Weblog printed images of drone wreckage from strikes close to the city of Savare.
Earlier this month, France 24 additionally recognized particles from a number of Russian drone methods in Mali, pointing to an increasing Russian drone presence within the nation. Till now, nonetheless, there was no verified footage exhibiting how Shahed-136 kind drones in flight and hitting targets.
Mali has been mired in battle since a rebel erupted within the nation’s north in 2012. In recent times, Russian forces, first by the Wagner Group and now by its successor, Africa Corps, have supported the Malian Armed Forces (FAMa) in operations towards Tuareg insurgent teams and jihadist organisations
Inafarak – July 12, 2026
On July 12, footage exhibiting the aftermath of a drone strike within the village of Inafarak was printed on X.
#حدود الجزائر ، مسيرة مالية ، انطلقت من قاعدة غاوا “
ضربت موقعا للتجار “ب” ( انفارغ ) الأضرار مادية”تنبيه “
منطقة الضربة تبعد عن حدود الجزائر، 20 km ” pic.twitter.com/wpxWY7Qvz5— محمدن أيب أيب (@EypeMohamedn) July 12, 2026
Bellingcat geolocated the footage to the city, which is near the border with Algeria (21.32330, 0.72980) utilizing satellite tv for pc imagery. We confirmed the placement by evaluating a post-strike satellite tv for pc picture captured on July 15 with imagery from 2024. The comparability reveals a number of buildings that have been standing in 2024 had been destroyed by July, 15, 2026. This injury was in keeping with that seen within the geolocated footage. The strike seems to have hit a industrial facility, with a broken truck and quite a few broken gas drums seen.
One of many movies reveals the stays of an engine which seems in keeping with an MD-550, a particular four-cylinder two-stroke engine which is discovered on the Shahed-136 household of drones. We confirmed the picture of the engine to 2 weapons researchers – Trevor Ball, an unbiased weapons professional and former Bellingcat investigator, and Leo Jarry, a drone professional with Tungsten Methods – who stated the engine is in keeping with the Shahed-136 household of drones.
The element additionally carefully matches reference imagery of MD-550 engines printed by the Open Supply Munitions Portal (OSMP), an expert-reviewed database of documented weapons remnants, and on the struggle & sanctions element database.
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The footage we discovered on X was additionally republished by the Wagner- and Africa Corps-affiliated Telegram channel “White Uncles in Africa”, which frequently shares racist memes and graphic posts and which Bellingcat has beforehand reported on.
The channel captioned the movies: “Now the Azawadi ‘khokhols’ can be seeing Gerans on a regular basis.” The usage of “Geran” refers to a Russian-manufactured model of the Shahed-136. The put up additionally makes use of the derogatory Russian slur “khokhol” for Ukrainians and applies it to individuals from Azawad, the identify utilized by Tuareg separatists for northern Mali.
Talahandak – July 17, 2026
On July 17, graphic footage exhibiting the aftermath of one other Shahed-136 kind drone strike was posted on X, exhibiting one casualty in addition to a burning truck. An extra video of the burning automobile reveals what seem like bottles of cooking oil spilling from the truck indicating it could have been a industrial truck.
Bellingcat geolocated these movies to the village of Talahandak (20.26369, 1.80095), which can be near the border with Algeria however round 100 miles southeast of Inafarak, by matching the encircling buildings to satellite tv for pc imagery.
Shortly afterwards, a Wagner-affiliated X account claimed that the drone chargeable for the strike had been shot down by rebels earlier than hitting the truck. The put up confirmed one video the place a Shahed-type drone could possibly be seen in flight.
#أزواد“منطقة” تل هنداك “سقوط مسيرة إيرانية انتحارية ‘ pic.twitter.com/g0yqbpRO9C
— محمدن أيب أيب (@EypeMohamedn) July 17, 2026
We have been in a position to geolocate the place the footage that captured the drone’s ultimate moments earlier than affect was filmed to a different space of Talahandak, practically a kilometer away (20.266907, 1.792656) from the video that confirmed the affect website.
A particular smoke plume will be seen rising from the sight of affect in a number of different movies posted on-line shortly after the strike.
Bellingcat geolocated every of those movies and matched the plume of smoke including additional affirmation that the footage exhibiting the drone in flight is genuine.
The video reveals the drone descending instantly in the direction of the placement the place the individual and truck have been hit, and there seems to be no interception earlier than affect.
A New Weapon Raises New Dangers
The Shahed-136 is a sequence of long-range one-way assault drones initially developed in Iran and now additionally manufactured in Russia. Not like the drones sometimes used by Mali’s Armed Forces- the Bayraktar TB2 , which launch comparatively small precision-guided munitions earlier than returning to base, one-way assault drones are designed to blow up on affect, permitting them to assault over longer distances given they don’t require restoration.
Leo Jarry, a drone professional with Tungsten Methods, advised Bellingcat that the drone offers Africa Corps and FAMa with an “expendable, cost-effective” long-range strike functionality, permitting them to interact targets in Mali’s far north past the efficient attain of the Bayraktar TB2. “The truth that these methods are comparatively low cost and expendable modifications the chance calculation for operators,” Jarry stated. “They can be utilized extra freely, doubtlessly forcing insurgents in northern Mali to adapt their behaviour to a brand new aerial risk.”
Nevertheless, Jarry stated the system is inherently much less exact than the Bayraktar TB2 as a result of it can not confirm its targets throughout flight. As a substitute, it depends on separate surveillance property to determine and monitor targets earlier than launch. “In Mali, the place armed teams are extremely cellular and steadily function amongst civilian populations, any hole between goal identification and affect creates a danger of hanging the fallacious goal.” Mixed with the drone’s bigger warhead, this will increase the potential for civilian hurt when employed in or close to populated areas.
#Azawad
un autre drone shahed russe a frappé un camion des marchandises à Talahandak. Ces marchandises une fois à Talahandak ils sont transité à Toumbouctou et Gao pour ravitailler ces villes,mais ces terroristes russes prefaireent terrorisés tout ce qui est dans l’Azawad. pic.twitter.com/y5E9ySC5RO— mahmoud (@mahmoud_sahara_) July 17, 2026
From Ukraine to Sahel
In Ukraine, Russian forces have used Shahed-136 kind drones extensively in long-range strike campaigns which have repeatedly focused civilian infrastructure, inflicting civilian casualties. Their look in Mali raises the chance that the operational practices related to these weapons are additionally being exported to this battle.
The deployment additionally follows Bellingcat’s and Jeune Afrique’s current investigation documenting the usage of banned Russian cluster munitions in Mali.
Malian forces and Africa Corps presently face mounting strain in northern Mali following a sequence of insurgent offensives. Combating has intensified in current months, with rebels capturing a number of navy bases and reportedly inflicting heavy losses on each FAMa and Africa Corps.
Jarry advised Bellingcat that the comparatively low price and expendable nature of those new drones make them properly suited to retaliatory strikes following assaults by rebels.
Bellingcat’s Carlos Gonzales contributed to this report in addition to the next members of Bellingcat’s volunteer neighborhood: Nicole Kiess, Afton Briones, Riccardo Giannardi and Ziyu Wan.
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