Sahel Edition

Mali: New terror attack kills two in the Segou regionF

Posted On 1 February 2023

Number of times this article was read : 978

A policeman and a civilian were killed and seven were wounded in an attack in jihadist-torn eastern Mali, officials said Wednesday. The attack occurred Tuesday evening at a checkpoint in San, a town some 400 kilometres (250 miles) east of the capital Bamako and about 80 kms from the border with Burkina Faso. Two gendarmes, a police officer and four civilians were wounded and the police station was ransacked, according to the mayor’s and governor’s offices. The attack was carried out by “suspected jihadists,” a local police source told AFP.

Mali is in the throes of an 11-year-old security crisis triggered by a regional revolt in the north that developed into a full-blown jihadist insurgency. Since August 2020, Mali has been ruled by the military, leading to a bust-up with France, the country’s traditional ally, and closer ties with Russia. The violence has mainly affected the centre and the east and spread to neighbouring Burkina Faso and Niger.

AFP

More on the Sahel

West Africa: Jihadist Attacks Intensify in Northern Benin Amid Cross-Border Insurgency Pressure$

Jihadist attacks in northern Benin have intensified in recent weeks, with militants linked to JNIM claiming a deadly assault on a military position near the Niger border and carrying out additional raids on security posts along the country’s volatile frontiers with Burkina Faso and Nigeria. The violence underscores how northern Benin has become part of a wider cross-border insurgency spilling south from the central Sahel, even as authorities bolster Operation Mirador and try to prevent armed groups from entrenching themselves on Beninese soil.

Desert Locusts Stir Fresh Worries in North-West Africa$

Small desert locust swarms recently detected along the western Sahara corridor have prompted stepped-up monitoring across parts of North and West Africa, where shifting rainfall can quickly turn quiet desert areas into launchpads for wider infestations.

Mali Army, Russian Allies Accused of Executing Civilians Near Mauritania Border$

Seven Malian refugees traveling from Mauritania were allegedly executed by Malian soldiers and Russian Africa Corps personnel near Ahl El Kory, close to the Mauritanian border, after their vehicles were stopped on March 6. Local sources say the unarmed Fulani civilians were shot or had their throats cut, while other passengers were beaten, questioned as suspected jihadists, then released.