At least 49 civilians and 15 government soldiers were killed in two attacks by jihadists in northeastern Mali on Thursday, according to the country’s military rulers. Many others were injured and the death toll could rise. The interim government stated this on national television, international news agencies report.
The jihadists attacked a passenger ship near the city of Timbuktu on the Niger River, the military government statement said. The ship was transporting civilians across the flooded plains that separate the cities of Gao and Mopti during the rainy season. It was en route from Gao when it was attacked.
A Malian military post in Bamba, further downstream in the Gao region, was also a target. Government forces killed about 50 attackers in response, the statement said.
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Authorities said the attacks were claimed by the Islamic extremist insurgent group JNIM, an umbrella coalition of armed groups linked to al-Qaeda. Three days of national mourning have been declared.
UN soldiers
Mali is one of several West African countries battling a violent uprising by jihadists. They have spread across the Sahel and into West African coastal countries, despite international efforts to support local forces.
Growing insecurity in Mali has increased instability in the Sahel region of West Africa. In the Sahel region south of the Sahara, thousands of people have been killed and more than six million people have been displaced. Mali has suffered two coups since 2020, with the army vowing to end jihadist violence.
There are thousands of UN soldiers in northeast Mali, but the UN is preparing to withdraw the 17,000-strong MINUSMA peacekeeping mission from the country at the request of the coup plotters. They only want to work with mercenaries from the Russian Wagner group. The withdrawal should be completed by the end of the year.