Explosions and sustained gunfire have been reported in Mali’s capital, Bamako, as armed groups launch apparently co-ordinated attacks across the country. The military stated on Saturday that “fighting is ongoing” and that “our defence and security forces are currently engaged in repelling the attackers”.<\/p>\n
Witnesses informed news agency Reuters of explosions and gunfire around Kati, which hosts a major military base outside the capital. Soldiers have been deployed to block off roads in the area. Reports also indicate attacks in Gao and Kidal in the north, and Sevare in central Mali, in what one analyst described as the largest jihadist attack in years.<\/p>\n
Mali has long been afflicted by jihadist insurgencies from groups affiliated with al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group, alongside a separatist movement in the country’s north. Reports suggest the assault by the separatist Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) \u2013 which seeks a breakaway ethnic Tuareg state \u2013 primarily targeted northern cities, while the jihadist group Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) staged simultaneous attacks on multiple locations nationwide.<\/p>\n
Mali’s military stated it was combating unidentified “terrorist groups” and that the situation was under control, though unconfirmed reports suggest fighting persists. While some residents describe calm in most parts of the capital, there are ongoing reports of gunfire in certain areas. Checkpoints have been established on roads leading to the airport, and vehicles are being searched.<\/p>\n
A resident, returning to Bamako from Ethiopia, told the BBC that all flights into the city were cancelled early on Saturday. It remains unclear whether the reported attacks have directly affected the airport. The UK Foreign Office has advised against all travel to Mali following the attacks, adding that Bamako International Airport had been temporarily closed.<\/p>\n
Ulf Laessing, head of the Sahel programme at the Konrad Adenauer Foundation in Mali, told the BBC that the incident appeared to be the “largest co-ordinated jihadist attack on Mali for years”. Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, chair of the African Union Commission, expressed “deep concern” over the situation, stating on X that he “strongly condemns these acts which risk exposing civilian populations to significant harm”.<\/p>\n
The US State Department’s Africa bureau strongly condemned the attacks, extending “deepest condolences to the victims, their families, and all those affected,” and affirming solidarity with “the Malian people and government in the face of this violence.” The US Embassy in Mali advised citizens to shelter in place and avoid travel, citing explosions and gunfire near the airport and Kati.<\/p>\n
Mohamed Elmaouloud Ramadane, a spokesperson for the FLA, claimed on social media that its forces had taken control of Kidal and were expanding their presence in the centre of Gao. He posted footage purportedly showing militants taking over a camp occupied by the Malian army and Russian mercenaries in Kidal, as well as a military helicopter allegedly shot down near Gao. The BBC has not been able to verify these claims.<\/p>\n
The FLA has for years been fighting for the creation of the state of Azawad in northern Mali, a substantial portion of which it effectively controls. Ramadane also urged neighbouring countries Burkina Faso and Niger not to intervene.<\/p>\n
Mali is currently governed by a military junta led by Gen Assimi Go\u00efta, who first seized power in a 2020 coup, promising to restore security and repel armed groups. The junta initially garnered popular support by pledging to address the long-running security crisis stemming from the Tuareg rebellion in the north, which was subsequently co-opted by Islamist militants. UN peacekeepers and French forces deployed to counter the escalating insurgency departed after the junta took over, and the military government subsequently hired Russian mercenaries to assist in tackling the insecurity. However, the jihadist insurgency has persisted, and large parts of the north and east of the country remain outside government control.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Explosions and sustained gunfire have been reported in Mali’s capital, Bamako, as armed groups launch apparently co-ordinated attacks across the country. The military stated on Saturday that “fighting is ongoing” and that “our defence and security forces are currently engaged in repelling the attackers”. Witnesses informed news agency Reuters of explosions and gunfire around Kati, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4661,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[38],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4660","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vanak.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4660","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vanak.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vanak.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vanak.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vanak.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4660"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/vanak.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4660\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vanak.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4661"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vanak.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4660"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vanak.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4660"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vanak.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4660"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}