Mali’s junta leader takes over the defence ministry after the minister is killed in terrorist attacks
Bamako, Mali — Bamako, Mali (AP) – gardener The junta leader and the country’s president have taken over as defense minister.
Officials said on Monday that widespread, coordinated attacks by separatist and jihadist forces shocked the West African nation following the assassination of the ruling leader.
According to the presidential order announced on state television, Assimi Goïta will remain president and will also take up the new role. Former armed forces chief of staff General Omar Diarra will assist him as deputy defence minister.
The announcement comes after the assassination of defence minister General Sadio Camara on April 25. Suicide bombing that targeted his home in Kati, a garrison town near the capital, Bamako.
Along with Bamako, Kati was one of several cities and towns attacked by militants from the al-Qaeda-linked group Jamaat Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimeen, or JNIM, and rebels from the Tuareg-led separatist group Azad Liberation Front, in one of the largest coordinated attacks in the country in more than a decade.
Islamic terrorists and capturedsts Captured many major cities and military bases.
A military junta took power in Mali in a coup in 2020 and promised to restore security amid a surge in extremist attacks. Since taking over the country, the junta has turned to Russia as its new security partner, forcing traditional allies such as France and the UN peacekeeping mission to abandon it.
But analysts say the security situation in Mali has deteriorated, with record numbers of attacks by both Islamist fighters and government forces and civilian casualties.
The announcement of Goita’s new role comes as tensions rise following the arrest of military personnel, civilians and political leaders suspected of having links to separatists and terrorists responsible for the attacks.
On Saturday a former Malian minister and junta critic was kidnapped by armed men from his house, his family told The Associated Press on Sunday.
Meanwhile, JNIM fighters have increased their pressure on the military government since last week by imposing a blockade around Bamako, setting up road blocks and checkpoints and stopping traffic.
The blockade disrupted travel on many roads last week, transportation companies told the AP, with armed groups now blocking the only route between Bamako and the western city of Kayes, leaving other roads linking the capital to the rest of the country largely impassable.
