France, Oct. 7 -- Around 120 vehicles carrying Malian soldiers, Russian Africa Corps troops and fighters from Tuareg armed groups integrated into the Malian army left the town of Anefis on Tuesday morning, according to RFI's sources.

By early afternoon, the convoy had entered Kidal.

"We encountered no resistance," a Malian officer told French news agency AFP, adding that troops had reached the city shortly before 1pm local time. Another officer said the army had arrived "ahead of schedule".

The advance followed several days of military preparations around Kidal, with government forces reinforcing positions at Anefis and Aguelhoc and stepping up air strikes around the city.

In a statement released on Tuesday, Mali's armed forces said t...