Malian Defense Minister Sadio Camara was killed in a bomb attack near Bamako. An attack on a key figure in the junta could fundamentally deepen the crisis in the unstable country.
Malian Defense Minister Sadio Camara was killed in an attack near the capital Bamako. Referring to their sources, AFP and Al-Jazeera television reported about it on Sunday. Jihadists from the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM) and the rebel movement Front for the Liberation of Azawad (FLA) launched a series of coordinated attacks across the country on Saturday. Their target was also the residence of the Minister of Defense in Kati, a suburb of Bamako. The European Union has already condemned terrorist attacks in the country, reports TASR.
- Defense Minister Sadio Camara was killed in a bomb attack.
- JNIM jihadists and FLA insurgents participated in the attack.
- Camara was a key figure in the military junta in Mali.
According to AFP sources, a car bomb outside his residence in Kati killed the minister and at least three members of his family on Saturday. Camara was a key figure in the military junta that seized power in Mali after two consecutive coups in 2020 and 2021. “He was one of the most influential figures within the ruling military leadership and was seen by some as a possible future leader of Mali,” Al Jazeera television reporter Nicolas Haque said. “His death is a big blow to the country’s armed forces,” he said.
The suburb of Bamaka Kati is considered one of the safest places in the country as the leaders of the military junta live there. According to al-Jazeera, its leader and the country’s interim president, Assimi Goita, has been under significant pressure since the start of the joint JNIM and FLA offensive, while analysts say the government forces were caught off guard by the offensive. On Sunday, the EU described the attacks as an act of terrorism and emphasized its commitment to security and stability in the Sahel region. “We strongly condemn the terrorist attacks committed in Mali on April 25,” spokesman Anouar El Anouni said in a statement, offering condolences “to the families of the victims as well as the Malian authorities.”
