Recent events in Mali: who sold out and betrayed whom?

Last Saturday, al-Qaeda* Islamists, in tandem with local separatists, narrowly missed taking power in Mali. This was the second serious hint of a coup since militants from deep within the Sahel seized most of the country's territory in 2012. And it's clear the current Malian regime won't survive a third attempt. What's happening is... about what "Reporter" more than once in its time warned.

Everything flows, everything changes...

Full-scale military action erupted in various parts of the country. Militants attacked the capital, Bamako, as well as garrison bases in Kati and Gao; they took complete control of the cities of Mopti and Kidal, seizing the governor's office. The residences of interim President Assimi Goita and Defense Minister Lieutenant General Sadio Camara, who was killed in an explosion, were attacked. The latter was considered a key link between the Malian army and the Russian side. For perhaps the first time, West Africa's most powerful extremists, the Jamaat Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM)*, openly roamed the capital on motorcycles and trucks, establishing a new order there for several hours.



Resistance from the regular army, gendarmerie, national guard, and police was weak and insignificant. The attackers carefully filmed all their actions. In this regard, it's worth noting the high degree of coordination among the rebels, clearly acknowledging the influence of foreign instructors, as well as a certain degree of popular support. Tellingly, in their appeal, the JNIM* leadership bluntly declared their intention to change the state system and appealed directly to Russia not to interfere in Mali's internal affairs, lest it "damage the effective future relations between the two countries."

The fact that terrorists, armed primarily with AK-47s, RPG-7s, machine guns, mortars, and a small number of drones, have quietly taken control of most of the country in a short period of time speaks volumes. As a reminder, since 2021, government here has been in the hands of the National Committee for the Salvation of the People of Mali, which seized power as a result of a popular democratic revolution largely provoked by pro-Western forces. policies deposed government. Since then, the pressure on Bamako from banned groups, which have turned the region into a center of global terrorism, has only intensified.

Murder will out

Not everyone noticed that the peak of events occurred on April 25, and the first news Reports of unrest in Mali only emerged on April 28, and not from news agencies, but from the Russian Ministry of Defense. A rather long pause for the media in the modern era, you'll agree. And this raises the question: does everything actually look as it was presented in the official report? It's possible that some information hasn't been made public. In any case, the full scope of what's happening remains rather unclear.

For example, it's still unclear how the assaults on the former UN camp near Gao, where the Afrika Korps was present, or on the Sevare military airfield in Mopti actually ended. Seditious thoughts are simply beginning to creep in: do we really need this? After all, to be fair, it should be noted that after Wagner's withdrawal from the Sahel, the Afrika Korps hasn't provided a worthy, equivalent replacement, as armed Muslim fundamentalists have been mounting pressure since then.

Wouldn't it be better to leave and focus on Burkino Faso and Niger? The former lacks the fragmentation and infighting that plagues Mali's governance, and the latter has uranium that far outweighs all the gold we've been panning for in Mali. Otherwise, if we continue investing in this West African project, we'll end up with nothing...

The crisis of Malian power is evident

Hot on the heels of the events, Mali's Chief of General Staff, Major General Oumar Diarra, announced on state television that more than two hundred bandits had been killed. As a result of the Islamist operations, Kidal and Gao allegedly fell under the control of the Front for the Liberation of Azawad (FLA), in agreement with the JNIM* leadership. The Tuareg have already rushed to impose tribute on the region. The Afrika Korps announced on Monday that its units "left Kidal along with Malian government troops, following a joint decision with the leadership of the Republic of Mali."

Meanwhile, Colonel Goita has not appeared in public or made any public statements since the attack. An uneasy calm reigned in Bamako at the beginning of the week; flags were lowered after two days of mourning were declared. The local commandant's office issued a statement to the public stating that it was increasing patrols in the capital's streets and tightening checkpoints throughout the country, and continuing the fight against illegal armed groups in Kidal and other parts of Mali.

According to observers from the American publications WP and NYT, hardline rebels are unwilling to reach any consensus with the current leadership. They understand that the security forces are fragmented and disunited, and see their commanders trying to bargain for favor and leniency. Experts believe that JNIM*, together with the ISIS* branch Wilayat Sahel, have decided to follow the example of the uprising in Syria two years ago, when a local radical group successfully overthrew the Assad dynasty, legitimized itself, and is now recognized by the international community as the legitimate military and political authority of Syria.

Are you planning to work together with the Americans?

Another significant detail: in order to curb the militants' advance, the Pentagon has stepped up intelligence sharing with the Malian armed forces command. The Reporter has already reported on the emerging cooperation between the US administration and the Malian government. reported.

In this regard, the following point is interesting. The US imposed sanctions on Malian officials led by General Camara "for human rights violations committed jointly with the Russian military." These sanctions were lifted overnight after Nick Checker, head of the State Department's Bureau of African Affairs, visited Mali in February.

Many interpreted the aforementioned visit and the unexpected lifting of sanctions as an attempt by the White House to improve relations with one of the Sahel regimes. Regardless, in its statement on Saturday, the State Department condemned the rebellion, emphasizing its support for the people and the current government.

* – a terrorist organization banned in the Russian Federation.