Dozens killed in fresh attacks in central Mali: local, security sources

Attacks on May 8 were claimed by the Al-Qaeda-linked Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM), who had already killed at least 30 people in attacks on villages on May 6.

Soldiers from the National Front for the Liberation of Azawad (FLA) sit on a pick-up truck as they patrol the streets of Kidal, on May 8, 2026. Mali's government refuses to talk to "terrorist" armed groups, the foreign minister has said, days after jihadists and allied separatists mounted unprecedented attacks against the junta.  Photo | AFP

BAMAKO: A fresh wave of attacks by jihadist fighters in central Mali killed dozens of people, local and security sources said Saturday (May 9, 2026).

Friday’s (May 8, 2026) attacks were claimed by the Al-Qaeda-linked Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM), who had already killed at least 30 people in attacks on villages on Wednesday (May 6, 2026).

One local official said the latest attacks by the armed groups had brought the toll to more than 70 in recent days.

Another local official put the death toll at 80.

“Our hearts are bleeding,” one local youth leader said, accusing nearby army detachments of doing nothing to help, despite multiple calls.

One security source described the situation in the region as “worrying”. “JNIM is targeting villages that refused to sign local agreements,” the source added.

The latest attacks come after JNIM and the Tuareg-dominated Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) carried out an unprecedented assault against the ruling junta in Mali last month.

Since then, Mali’s security situation has become critical, with several areas in the north now controlled by armed groups.