Kidal, the last rebel stronghold in Mali, is now the focus of French troops as they move to take full control of the city.

French troops arrived at the desert capital of Kidal at 9:30 Wednesday evening in four transports and helicopters. They met no resistance from the Tuareg in control of the city as they swept into the facility.

Earlier this week, the Tuareg rebel splinter group, the MNLA said that they had taken over Kidal, and reported that no other Tuareg rebel groups were in the city, as French troops continued into the city unopposed, this seems to be the case.

It was suspected earlier that rebel fighters had fled to the desert city after a vicous aerial onslaught by the French on the areas of Timbuktu and Gao earlier this week. But, as French helicopters hover overhead and troops move through the city unopposed, it seems the rebels have melted away into the desert or melded in with the population.

The French began operations in Mali beginning on January 11th, as armed Tuareg rebels began encroaching on the southern part of the country from their northern strongholds in the desert north threatening to take total control of the region.

France now has 3,500 troops on the ground as well as a wide array of aerial assets. Thos troops will depart quickly after the initial threat is over says France’s Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius. Rapid training of Mali troops has begun and a joint African force will take over operations soon. “Now it’s up to African countries to take over,” Fabius told Le Parisien on Wednesday. “We decided to put the means in – men and supplies – to make the mission succeed and hit hard. But the French aspect was never expected to be maintained. We will leave quickly.”