Some military officers in Mali worked with extremists and separatists who recently launched their biggest round of attacks in over a decade in the conflict-battered country, authorities said late Friday.
The separatist fighters, meanwhile, said earlier in the day that they captured a strategic military camp in the northern town of Tessalit after the withdrawal of Mali's army and its Russian allies from there.
The claim by the Azawad Liberation Front separatist group was the latest setback for Mali’s ruling junta, which lost control of the major city of Kidal earlier in the week as part of the attacks that killed Malian Defense Minister Sadio Camara.
Mali has been run by the military since a 2020 coup and has long suffered violence as extremists groups expand in surrounding territories in the wider Sahel region south of the Sahara Desert, which is known as global hotspot for violent extremism.
The latest assault in the West African nation began Saturday after al-Qaeda-backed JNIM and the Azawad Liberation Front, or FLA, partnered to target the main international airport in the capital, Bamako, as well as other Malian towns and cities in near-simultaneous attacks, with the fighters riding on motorcycles and trucks.
A statement from the public prosecutor at the Military Court of Bamako, which was read on state television on Friday, noted that investigations found “solid evidence regarding the complicity of certain military personnel” in the attacks, including serving and recently dismissed officers.
The officers participated in “the planning, coordination, and execution” of the attacks, the prosecutor's statement said, while also alleging the involvement of politicians, including Oumar Mariko, a prominent Malian politician in exile.
Malian army withdraws from key town
Before the arrival of the FLA fighters Friday, the Malian army and members of Russia’s Africa Corp reportedly pulled out of the Tessalit military camp, which is strategically located near an airport and the border with Algeria.
Achafghi Ag Bouhanda, a top FLA commander, announced the capture of Tessalit in an online video verified by The Associated Press.
The AP could not independently confirm the situation at the camp. Malian authorities did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
At least 10 locations have been attacked by the militants since the latest assault began, forcing Malian and Russian forces to withdraw from the key northern city of Kidal, which was once a stronghold of the separatists.
The junta has vowed to continue its aerial and ground offensive against the militants.
“Military operations will continue until the armed groups involved have been completely neutralized and security has been sustainably restored throughout the country,” Assimi Goita, Malian military leader, said on Tuesday.
The extremists have at various times in recent days blocked roads leading to Mali’s capital Bamako, further squeezing the city that already was facing a fuel blockade imposed by the militants late last year.
JNIM earlier this week announced it would enforce a total blockade of Bamako's four major routes, which had previously been partially blocked by the militants.
Traffic leading to the city was disrupted Friday and there were reports of roadblocks. The partial blockade has forced some travel agencies to stop operating, travelers said.
“These days, traveling by road is a dangerous undertaking,” said Aminata Traoré, who travels between Bamako and the Sikasso region in the south of the country.
