In northern Mali, which is besieged by Islamists, the withdrawal of UN peacekeepers threatens to worsen the violence. Three attacks within 24 hours with dozens of deaths are fueling fears.
Dozens of people have been killed in attacks by Islamist fighters in northern Mali within 24 hours. At least 49 civilians and 15 soldiers were killed in attacks on a passenger ship on the Niger River and on an army camp in Bamba in the Gao region on Thursday, the military government of the West African state said.
On Friday morning, terrorists carried out a suicide attack on a Malian army base near the town of Gao, near the Bundeswehr camp. The regional branch of the terrorist group Al-Qaeda, JNIM, claimed responsibility for all three attacks.
The number of deaths has not yet been determined with certainty
The passenger ship “Tombouctou” was traveling from the city of Gao to Mopti in the center of the country. Both regions have been under siege for years by Islamist terrorist groups that are close to Al-Qaeda and its rival terrorist militia IS.
According to media reports, the ship came under heavy fire from the shore on Thursday morning and caught fire. It was not initially clear how many passengers were on board. A higher number of deaths is also possible. Mali’s government declared three days of national mourning.
Regarding the attack on the army camp near Gao on Friday morning, Mali’s army initially only said that it was a complex suicide attack. Details should be announced later. The attack took place 1.5 kilometers from the Bundeswehr’s field camp for use in the UN peacekeeping mission. There are still around 850 German soldiers there who are due to leave by the end of the year when the mission is completed.
German soldiers probably not affected
When asked, a spokesman for the Bundeswehr’s operational command said that the German soldiers had moved into the camp’s protective facilities on Friday morning after three explosions nearby. “According to current knowledge, we are not affected.”
The UN mission to stabilize Mali (Minusma), which has been in the country since 2013, is withdrawing as planned by the end of the year at the request of the military government and handing over its bases to the Malian security forces. In mid-June, the military government, which is increasingly turning its attention to Russia and is fighting the terrorists with mercenaries from the Russian Wagner Group, vehemently called for the withdrawal of all around 12,000 UN peacekeepers by the end of the year. Germany had already decided to end its participation.
The UN mission was launched after Islamist terrorists overran the north of the country in 2012 following the collapse of Libya and a rebellion by nomadic Tuaregs. A military intervention by the former colonial power France only temporarily pushed back the Islamists.
The terrorist groups have since spread into Mali and its neighboring states Niger and Burkina Faso. All three states are ruled by the military after coups in the last two years and are turning away from European partners, particularly France.
There were fears that the situation would worsen
Experts had already warned that the situation in northern Mali would deteriorate significantly as the UN peacekeepers withdrew. According to surveys by the conflict data organization ACLED, around 2,400 people died in violence in Mali in the first eight months of this year. The exact number of civilians killed is not clear from the data, but they are repeatedly the target of attacks. A conflict between the Malian state and the nomadic Tuareg also threatens to break out again after the UN withdraws.
Source: Stern
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