Armed Rebel Attack Kills 26 People In Mali

UNSPLASH ILLUSTRATION

JAKARTA - Gunmen killed 26 people in an attack on a village in the Mopti area that was hit by rebels in Mali.

The attack on Sunday, July 21, targeted villages in the Circle of Bankass, one of several areas in northern and central Mali where jihadist groups linked to al Qaeda and ISIS launched violent insurgency.

Armed attackers opened fire on villagers working in the fields, said Bankass Mayor Mouaye Guindo by telephone as reported by Reuters on Monday, July 22.

Soldiers deployed to the area only reached the village after the attack, Guindo said, regretting the deteriorating insecurity in the West African country.

The rebellion in the Sahel region south of the Sahara has gained momentum since taking place in Mali following the Tuareg uprising in 2012.

Despite the pressure back from the military, jihadists have spread to neighboring Burkina Faso and Niger, and recently to northern coastal countries such as Togo, Ghana and Ivory Coast.

Thousands of people were killed and millions displaced. About 40 people were killed in a similar attack on a village in Bankass in early July and more than 20 people were killed in another attack in late May.

The failure of the authorities in protecting civilians has contributed to two coups in Mali, two in Burkina Faso, and one in Niger since 2020.

The junta has since abandoned a traditional Western ally and sought Russian support against the group.