Militants and separatists launch coordinated attacks across Mali | Mali
Islamist militants and separatists attacked several sites in Mali’s capital and other cities on Saturday, carrying out one of the largest coordinated attacks in the country in recent years.
Al Qaeda-linked militant group JNIM claimed responsibility for attacks on Bamako’s international airport and four other cities in central and northern Mali via the Azallaq website. It was stated that the attacks were carried out jointly with the Tuareg-led separatist group Azawad Liberation Front.
Mali has previously faced insurgencies led by groups affiliated with Al Qaeda and the Islamic State, as well as a separatist insurgency in the north.
In the statement made by the Malian army, it was stated that “unidentified armed terrorist groups targeted certain places and barracks in Bamako” and that the soldiers were “busy neutralizing the attackers.” In the statement made later, it was stated that the situation was under control.
An Associated Press reporter in Bamako heard sustained heavy gunfire and automatic rifle fire from Modibo Keïta international airport, about 15 km from the city center, and saw a helicopter over nearby neighborhoods. The airport is adjacent to an air base used by the Mali air force. A resident living near the airport also reported hearing gunshots and three helicopters patrolling overhead.
Citing reports of explosions and gunshots near Kati and the international airport, the US embassy in Bamako issued a security alert and urged US citizens to shelter in place and avoid traveling there.
A resident of the town of Kati, near Bamako, home to Mali’s main military base, said he was awakened by gunshots and explosions. General Assimi Goita, leader of the military junta in Mali, lives in Kati. The residence of Mali Defense Minister Sadio Camara was heavily damaged by an explosion during the attack, a nearby shopkeeper told the AP on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation.
Residents watched in horror as videos on social media showed convoys of militants driving trucks and motorcycles through the deserted streets of Kati.
Residents of Sevare and Mopti, two towns in central Mali, also reported attacks by armed attackers.
Other videos in the northern towns of Kidal and Gao showed gunshots heard in the streets and bodies lying on the ground.
Rebels took control of some neighborhoods and entered Kidal, prompting clashes with the army, a former mayor of the town told the AP by phone, speaking on condition of anonymity because he feared for his safety.
Mohamed Elmaouloud Ramazane, spokesman for the Azawad movement, said in a post on Facebook that his forces had taken control of Kidal as well as some areas in Gao, another city in the northeast. The AP could not independently verify his claim.
Kidal long served as a stronghold of the separatist insurgency before being captured by Malian government forces and Russian mercenaries in 2023. The capture of Kidal marked an important symbolic victory for the junta and its Russian allies.
Azawad separatists have been fighting for years to establish an independent state in northern Mali.
A resident of Gao, northern Mali’s largest city, said the gunfire and explosions started early on Saturday and could still be heard late in the morning.
“The force of the explosions is shaking the doors and windows of my house. I’m going crazy with fear,” said the resident, who spoke by phone on condition of anonymity due to concerns about his safety. A resident of the area said that the gunshots came from the military camp and the airport, which are located next to each other.
Ulf Laessing, head of the Sahel program at the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, said the attack appeared to be the largest coordinated attack in Mali in recent years.
“It is particularly concerning that JNIM is coordinating today’s attacks with Tuareg rebels. Jihadists and Tuareg rebels came together when they invaded northern Mali in 2012, sparking a security crisis in the region,” Laessing said.
Mali, along with neighbors Niger and Burkina Faso, has long been at war with armed groups affiliated with Al Qaeda and the Islamic State group.
Following the military coups, the juntas in the three countries turned to their western allies, Russia, for help in fighting Islamist militants. But analysts say the security situation has deteriorated recently, with a record number of attacks by militants. Government forces are also accused of killing civilians they suspected of collaborating with militants.
In 2024, an al-Qaeda-linked group claimed responsibility for an attack on Bamako’s airport and a military training camp in the capital, killing scores of people.
