The Latest Breaking News from Mali

Mali attacks: Tuareg grievances hold the key to peace

The precarious security situation in Mali took a turn for the worse in late April 2026. Well coordinated attacks targeted several cities and claimed the lives of the defence minister, Sadio Camara, and several Malian soldiers.

The Conversation · May 5

Mali's junta leader takes over defense ministry after the minister was killed in militant attacks

Mali’s junta leader and the country's president has assumed the duties of defense minister after the incumbent was killed in sweeping, coordinated attacks by separatist and jihadi forces that stunned the country

The Independent UK · May 4

Are Mali’s Tuareg-led FLA fighters terrorists or separatists?

A Tuareg-led separatist group in Mali has insists it is not a “terrorist” organisation despite carrying out coordinated attacks with al-Qaeda-linked fighters that hit military targets and killed the country’s defence minister last month. The group, known as the Azawad Liberation Front (FLA), was formed in December 2024 and is…

Radio France Internationale · May 4

Mali accuses military officers of working with rebels to carry out attacks against government

A state public prosecutor alleges some Malian military officers have been working with jihadi rebels and separatist fighters who launched their biggest round of attacks in over a decade

The Independent UK · May 2

Mali rebels seize key military camp as junta forces and Russians retreat

Mali's army and its Russian mercenary allies surrendered a strategic northern military stronghold to armed rebels on Friday, as Tuareg separatists and jihadists waged a unified front to bring down the country's junta.

Radio France Internationale · May 1

Mali holds funeral for key junta figure killed in militant assaults

Mali's former defense minister Gen. Sadio Camara, who played a key role in the country's shift toward Russia, was buried in a ceremony broadcast on state television

The Independent UK · Apr 30

Russia vows to keep forces in Mali despite warning from separatists to withdraw

Russia said on Thursday its forces would remain in Mali and continue backing the country’s military rulers, rejecting demands from Tuareg separatists to withdraw after surprise attacks forced Russian troops out of a key northern town.

Radio France Internationale · Apr 30

Curfews, conspiracy theories … and a cancelled concert: Mali’s capital tries to shrug off violence on its doorstep

Surprise coordinated attack by jihadists and separatists last weekend has rattled the regime and its security ally Russia

The Guardian - UK · Apr 30

Mali junta leader Goita to attend funeral of defence minister killed in rebel attacks

Mali's junta leader Assimi Goita is expected to attend the funeral on Thursday of Mali's defence minister Sadio Camara, who was killed in an assault on his home during attacks that have destabilised the army's grip on power.

Radio France Internationale · Apr 30

Is Ukraine Helping Al Qaeda Conquer West Africa?

The proliferation of drones to Malian rebels is a bizarre, unexpected form of blowback.

Reason · Apr 29