May 1, 2026 at 1:42 pm Updated May 1, 2026 at 2:13 pm BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — Separatist rebels in Mali said Friday they captured a strategic military camp in the northern town of Tessalit after the withdrawal of the army and their Russian allies, as the militants launch their biggest round of attacks in over a decade. The claim by the Azawad Liberation Front separatist group was the latest setback for Mali’s ruling junta, which lost control of the major city of Kidal earlier in the week as part of attacks that killed Malian Defense Minister Sadio Camara. Local reports said the Malian army and members of Russia’s Africa Corp pulled out of Tessalit starting Thursday. The Azawad Liberation Front, or FLA, has been fighting in the region in collaboration with the al-Qaeda-backed Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin, or JNIM. Achafghi Ag Bouhanda, a top FLA commander, announced the capture of the Tessalit camp in a video posted online. The camp is strategically located near an airport and the border with Algeria.…