The junta and its Wagner Group allies are reopening battles with the former separatist as they race to take over the UN's bases, After a decade of the UN's 15,000-strong peacekeeping force operating in northern Mali, the region is adapting to its sudden departure. Two threats stand out: the insurgent Islamist groups heading southwards are capturing more territory in the Ménaka and Gao regions; and Mali's national army, backed by fighters from Russia's Wagner Group, are fighting former separatist groups for control of the UN's recently vacated bases in the region.