Mali’s military government announced on Tuesday that Bamako, the capital, is under control after insurgents launched a pre-dawn attack on a gendarmerie training school and other locations, causing gunfire to echo throughout the city.
The army confirmed that “a group of terrorists attempted to infiltrate the Faladie gendarmerie school” early in the morning. A mopping-up operation is currently underway, and residents were advised to avoid the area and wait for official updates.
Several “sensitive points” of the capital came under attack, including the gendarmerie school, the military government said, but the army successfully repelled the insurgents. Authorities urged civilians to continue their daily activities.
The Faladie gendarmerie school is situated in a southeastern district of Bamako, near the main international airport. Reuters reported hearing gunfire in the Banankabougou neighborhood, near Faladie, just before sunrise. As the shots rang out, people heading to the mosque for morning prayers turned back.
Gunfire was first heard around 0530 GMT, with some residents reporting it came from the airport’s direction, while others said it originated near the gendarmerie. According to security sources, shots were fired in multiple neighborhoods, including areas near the airport, which was subsequently closed.
Mali, along with several other West African countries, has been battling an Islamist insurgency since 2012, when the conflict began in the country’s arid north. The insurgency has since spread across the Sahel and reached the northern coastal areas, causing widespread violence.
The region has witnessed thousands of deaths and the displacement of millions, as militants linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State continue their advance. Both governments and insurgents have faced accusations of committing atrocities against civilians.
Frustration over the inability to restore security has led to two military coups in Mali in 2020 and 2021, followed by coups in neighboring Burkina Faso and Niger. Despite the ruling juntas’ promises to enhance security by shifting alliances from Western countries to Russian support, including the use of Wagner mercenaries, jihadist attacks have continued to escalate.
In a recent incident, experienced Wagner fighters were killed during a battle between Tuareg rebels and Mali’s army near the Algerian border. It is, however, rare for insurgents to strike within Bamako itself. The last significant attack in the capital occurred in 2015 when armed men carried out a deadly assault on the Radisson Blu hotel, killing 20 people.
