Sahel Edition

Mali: Insurgents in armored vehicles kill ten Mali soldiers in BoniF

Posted On 4 February 2021

Number of times this article was read : 566

Ten troops were killed in Mali’s troubled central region early Wednesday when their camp came under attack from jihadists, security sources said. Their position at Boni, located between Douentza and Hombori in the Mopti region, was attacked by “heavily armed individuals in armoured vehicles,” one source said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Several soldiers were injured, the source said, an account confirmed by another security official and a local government official.

The 10 bodies had been brought back to the airport in Sevare, near the town of Mopti, by a helicopter from the UN’s MINUSMA peacekeeping force, while the injured were taken to hospital, local officials said. The security source said the camp had been seriously damaged and the assailants had made off with lots of equipment.

Today a propaganda outlet close to Al-Qaeda, claimed that the attack had, been carried out by the Group to Support Islam and Muslims (GSIM), seen as the most dangerous of the many jihadist groups active in the Sahel region. The attack is the latest in a brutal conflict that has been raging in Mali since 2012, when jihadists overtook a rebellion by mostly ethnic Tuareg separatists in the north. The conflict, which has killed thousands of soldiers and civilians, then spread to central Mali, an ethnic powderkeg, and neighbouring Burkina Faso and Niger.

Jihadist attacks in central Mali typically involve roadside bombs or hit-and-run raids on motorbikes or pickups, and the use of armoured vehicles, if confirmed, is extremely rare. Heni Nsaibia, a researcher with an NGO project called the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data (ACLED), said jihadists had seized armoured vehicles from the armed forces in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger.

The Malian army said on social media that it had received air support from France’s anti-jihadist Barkhane mission in the Sahel. A Malian military official said the assailants had suffered “major casualties” but did not give details. Central Mali has seen a string of deadly attacks since the start of the year, including a roadside bomb that killed four UN peacekeepers from  Ivory Coast. French and Malian troops have also carried out a joint mission in the area, called Operation Eclipse. According to a Malian army statement on January 26, “100 terrorists were neutralised” in the operation.

AFP

More on the Sahel

Sudan’s Army Gains Ground in Kordofan as War Strains Power and Food Systems$

Sudan’s army is gaining ground in North Kordofan, securing key transport routes that could support a broader push west toward Darfur. But battlefield advances are unfolding alongside a deepening national crisis, with power grid failures, disrupted agriculture and local conflicts compounding the country’s instability. But this latest military momentum is unlikely to resolve Sudan’s widening humanitarian and infrastructure challenges.

Sahel: Niger Emerges as Key Battleground as JNIM and Islamic State Collide$

A defection, a blood feud, and overlapping territorial ambitions are pushing JNIM and the Islamic State Sahel Province into direct competition across western Niger. The outcome around the region of Dosso could determine whether Sahelian jihadist violence stays fragmented — or consolidates into a wider regional arc.

The Nigeria Precedent: Why Degrading One Group Won’t Secure Mali$

The Nigeria Precedent: Why Degrading One Group Won’t Secure Mali$

Seven months into an air campaign against ISWAP and Boko Haram, Nigeria’s broader insecurity crisis remains largely untouched. As Washington weighs a similar strike option against JNIM in Mali, the Nigeria case raises hard questions about what airpower can actually buy.