Terror groups with ties to Al Qaeda launched deadly nighttime raids on two villages in central Mali Wednesday, resulting in approximately 50 deaths among civilians and pro-government defense forces, according to three sources who spoke with international media Thursday.
The violence marks the most lethal incident since the Al Qaeda-affiliated organization Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) joined forces with the Tuareg-led rebel organization Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) for synchronized strikes throughout the West African nation in late April. Intermittent combat has continued since those initial attacks.
The raids targeted two communities within the Mopti region, according to an aid worker, diplomatic official, and security source who provided information about the incidents.
A local resident from Bankass, located close to the attacked areas, verified that assaults occurred Wednesday evening but was unable to specify casualty numbers or identify those responsible.
“Unidentified armed men burst in, opening fire and ransacking the village,” the person said.
Officials have not determined how many victims were non-combatants. Village protection often falls to local defense militias and hunter groups that work alongside Mali’s military forces to defend against extremist attacks in the region.
Military representatives have not yet responded to requests for information regarding the latest attacks.
During a Wednesday press briefing in Bamako, Mali’s army commander Djibrilla Maiga explained that extremist fighters were working to regroup following the April 25 strikes, which resulted in the death of the defense minister and forced Russian forces supporting Mali’s leadership to withdraw from the strategically important northern city of Kidal.
“The threat is still present,” Maiga said, though he added that the military was disrupting their manoeuvres.
JNIM recently declared its intention to establish a blockade around the capital city Bamako through checkpoint installations on approaching roadways.
Maiga reported that militants were concentrating efforts on routes toward Kayes and Kita, hampering movement to western Mali, while other passages including those to Segou in central Mali remained open for travel. Kita sits approximately 180 kilometers from Bamako, with Kayes located roughly 580 kilometers away.
In northern Mali, where FLA militants captured Kidal and the strategic Tessalit base, military leadership is relocating specific units as part of their counter-response, Maiga explained without offering additional specifics.
Beyond assassinating Defense Minister Sadio Camara through an explosive-laden vehicle attack on his residence, the militants also targeted the home of Assimi Goita, who leads the government that assumed control through military coups in 2020 and 2021, according to Maiga.
Security personnel “contained the threat and defused the vehicle”, he said.
Goita made a state television appearance on April 28, declaring that Mali’s situation remained under government control.
Mali’s armed forces have “neutralised” several hundred “terrorists” following the April 25 attacks, Maiga reported.
