Mali’s Defence Minister Killed In Coordinated Attacks

Mali’s Defence Minister General Sadio Camara has been killed amid coordinated attacks on military sites across the country, sources told Al Jazeera on Sunday, although conflicting reports emerged as the military government claimed the situation was under control .

The news came a day after Camara’s residence in the garrison town of Kati, about 15km (9 miles) northwest of the capital Bamako, came under attack during simultaneous assaults launched by an al-Qaeda affiliate and Tuareg rebels on Saturday .

According to Al Jazeera, who has reported extensively from Mali, attackers carried out a suicide car bomb assault on Camara’s residence in Kati, considered one of the most secure locations in the country .

“He was one of the most influential figures within the ruling military leadership and had been seen by some as a possible future leader of Mali,” Haque said. “His death is a major blow to the country’s armed forces” .

However, other reports have offered conflicting information. A Malian army statement on Saturday said 16 people, including civilians and military personnel, were wounded in the attacks, but claimed “the situation is fully under control in all the localities” targeted. The government imposed a 72-hour curfew across the capital Bamako following the violence .

Camara was a central figure in the military government that seized power after back-to-back coups in 2020 and 2021, serving as a key ally of junta leader General Assimi Goita .

The al-Qaeda-linked Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) claimed responsibility for the attacks, stating they were carried out in coordination with the Tuareg rebel Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) . The group said its forces had targeted the homes of both Goita and Camara, as well as Bamako international airport and other strategic locations .

Witnesses reported intense fighting across multiple cities, including the capital Bamako, the northern cities of Gao and Kidal, and the central city of Sevare . The FLA claimed to have seized control of Kidal, a northern town that served as a separatist stronghold before being recaptured by government forces in 2023 .

“We’re looking at a major coordinated offensive across the country on a level unseen since 2012 when the government lost half the country,” said analyst Charlie Werb of Aldebaran Threat Consultants .

Germany’s Konrad Adenauer Foundation analyst Ulf Laessing noted: “This looks like the largest coordinated attack in years” .

Russia’s foreign ministry estimated about 250 fighters took part in the assault on Bamako’s airport and nearby military base, claiming the attack was repelled . Mali’s army said it had killed “several hundred” assailants .

The attacks represent a significant challenge to the junta led by Goita, which came to power promising to restore security after coups in 2020 and 2021. Since 2012, Mali has grappled with a persistent security crisis involving jihadist groups, criminal organizations, and separatists, with thousands killed and tens of thousands displaced .

“As we speak, people in the garrison town of Kidal can still hear heavy gunfire and loud explosions,” Al Jazeera’s Haque reported on Sunday. “This remains an ongoing operation more than 24 hours after it began” .