Militants Seize Major Cities in Mali in Coordinated Al-Qaeda-Linked Attacks

Several cities in Mali were attacked by militants associated with al-Qaeda and separatists in the largest military strikes there in more than a decade.

The attacks, which appear to have been coordinated, were conducted by the group Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin, known as JNIM, which has claimed credit for them, according to reports from The New York Times, Al Jazeera, and the Washington Post.

The group hit the cities of Kidal and Mopti, as well as key nearby military bases, while also striking in the heart of Mali’s capital, Bamako.

JNIM claimed after the attacks that it has taken “complete control” of the country and is promising a “real transformation” there, which included asking Russian-linked military groups to hold back from getting involved.

The group used car bombs and drones to conduct the attacks, which experts said were aimed at bringing down the regime in Mali, which came to power in 2021 promising to boost security and enhance safety.

Fighting is ongoing, the Mali military said in a statement on Saturday, noting that unidentified armed terrorist groups targeted certain locations and barracks in the capital and the interior early that morning.