Sawt Falasteen - Mali junta in crisis after minister killed, key city 'captured'

There was no word from the junta leader General Assimi Goita, who has not been seen since the attacks began at dawn on Saturday.

The offensive, synchronised by Tuareg rebels of the Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) coalition and the jihadist Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM), targeted several areas in the vast arid country.

Analysts said the coordinated attacks were the most serious challenge to the country's rulers since the March 2012 offensive that was repelled by the intervention of French forces, who have since left.

Government troops were still fighting in some parts of the country, but the loss of Defence Minister Sadio Camara Saturday represented a serious blow to the administration.

Camara, his second wife and two of his grandchildren died after a car bomb attack on his home in the junta stronghold of Kati, outside Bamako, his family and an official said.

There was still fighting Sunday in several areas, including Kati, Kidal, Gao and Severe.

- Rebels claim Kidal -

Tuareg rebels told AFP they had reached an agreement allowing Russian Africa Corps forces backing Mali's army to withdraw from the northern city of Kidal, which they claimed was "totally" under their control.

"We saw a military convoy leave, but don't know the details of what's happening. Fighters from armed movements have now taken over the streets," said one resident.

Mali's army had recaptured Kidal, a Tuareg stronghold, in November 2023 with the help of Russia's Wagner paramilitary group, ending more than a decade of control by rebels.

The FLA, made up of mainly Tuareg groups who want independence for Azawad, a territory in northern Mali, also said it had taken positions in the northern Gao region.

Mali has been ravaged for more than a decade by conflict and jihadist violence but Saturday's attacks were the worst since 2020, when the junta seized power.

The situation in Sevare, central Mali, where gunfire could still be heard, remained "confused", said one local official.

While there has been no word from or sighting of junta chief Goita, a Malian security source told AFP he was in a safe place.

- Residents on edge -

On Sunday, calm had returned to Kati, where the defence minister was killed a day before.

"The jihadists left the area, but we are living in fear", one resident told AFP.

The international airport, just outside Bamako, was operating again, after heavy fighting Saturday in the outlying district of Senou.

"I still hear the blasts ringing in my ears. It's traumatising," said one resident.

In the capital Bamako, troops had blocked access to military facilities using barriers and tyres on the roads, an AFP journalist said.

The fighting wounded 16 civilians and soldiers, causing "limited material damage", the government said in a statement Saturday evening, adding that "the situation is totally under control in all the localities".

The opposition Coalition of Forces for the Republic (CFR), said in a statement that Mali was "in danger".

The junta had "promised Malians security, stability and the return of the State" it said. After the weekend offensive, nobody could seriously claim that Mali was either pacified or secure, it added.

United Nations chief Antonio Guterres condemned "acts of violence" in Mali, his spokesman said in a statement.

"The Secretary-General calls for coordinated international support to address the evolving threat of violent extremism and terrorism in the Sahel and to meet urgent humanitarian needs," spokesman Stephane Dujarric added.

The European Union on Sunday condemned the "terrorist attacks" in Mali.

Mali has resources including gold and other valuable minerals.

Mali's rulers, like their military counterparts in neighbouring Niger and Burkina Faso, have severed ties with former colonial ruler France and several Western countries, moving closer to Russia.

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L.AbuTayeh--SF-PST