Mali: Islamist militants kill dozens in attack on boat, base

[Eugene]

Source: Deutsche-Welle

Mali: Islamist militants kill dozens in attack on boat, base

At least 49 civilains and 15 soldiers were killed in two separate attacks by suspected jihadists in Mali.

4 hours ago

At least 64 people were killed in Mali on Thursday in two attacks on an army base and a passenger ship on the Niger River.

The two separate attacks by suspected jihadists targeted the river ship near Timbuktu and a military base in Bamba in the northern Gao region, officials said. According to preliminary information, "49 civilians and 15 soldiers were killed."

According to the government, the attacks have been claimed by the extremist Islamist insurgent group JNIM, an umbrella coalition of armed groups aligned with al-Qaida.

The Malian government's statement said its forces killed about 50 attackers in response to the attacks.

-snip-

Read more: https://www.dw.com/en/mali-islamist-militants-kill-dozens-in-attack-on-boat-base/a-66753361

[msongs]

1. so will there be protest riots in Pakistan over this? nt

[muriel_volestrangler]

2. From the article (and others): Timbuktu is under blockade by Islamists

The attack came after another al-Qaida-linked faction, the Support Group for Islam and Muslims (GSIM), announced last month that it was blockading Timbuktu, the historic crossroads city of northern Mali. There have also been attacks on villages by Islamic extremists in the central Mopti region.
...
Tensions in the region have revived in recent weeks after the 13,000-strong UN peacekeeping mission in Mali, which has been told to leave by the year’s end, handed over two bases near Timbuktu to the armed forces.

The handover triggered clashes between the army and the jihadists and led to an angry showdown with the former rebels, stoking fears for the 2015 peace agreement.
...
Much of the violence in Mali is driven by the rivalry between the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara and JNIM, the two main extremist groups.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/sep/08/mali-jihadists-kill-at-least-64-people-amid-growing-islamist-threat

I wouldn't want to be a Mali civilian; that's 2 Islamist groups, a military junta, and the Wagner mercenaries who might kill you without reason.