Mali’s Defence Minister Sadio Camara was killed Saturday in an attack by the al-Qaeda-linked group JNIM on his residence at the Kati military base outside the capital Bamako, France’s RFI radio reported on Sunday.
The killing followed one of the largest coordinated insurgent operations in Mali in recent years. According to Reuters, attacks continued on Sunday, with gunfire ringing out in a garrison town near the capital. JNIM, the Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin, and Tuareg rebels claimed joint responsibility for the assaults, which struck multiple locations across the country including gold-producing areas.
The final toll of dead and wounded remained unclear at the time of reporting. The fate of the contested northern city of Kidal, which the insurgents claim to have recaptured from government forces during the assault, was also uncertain.
The United Nations called for an international response to the violence. “The Secretary-General is deeply concerned by reports of attacks in several locations across Mali. He strongly condemns these acts of violence,” a UN spokesperson said in a post on X.
The weekend assault is among the boldest operations mounted by insurgents against Mali’s military-led government, which seized power through coups in 2020 and 2021 and has since severed long-standing security ties with France and the United Nations peacekeeping mission in favour of Russian Wagner-affiliated forces.
The death of a sitting defence minister at a fortified military base outside the capital marks a significant security failure for the junta led by General Assimi Goïta. Kati hosts the Malian armed forces’ main barracks and was the staging ground for the 2020 coup that brought the current military government to power.
Sources: Ada Derana (Reuters/RFI).
