Al Qaeda branch claims attack on second Mali military base

At least 49 civilians and 15 soldiers were killed when assailants attacked the boat on a waterway that connects the northern regions of Gao and Mopti and raided a camp in the Bourem Circle, in Gao region, which has become a hotbed of jihadist activity over the past decade. Mali's interim government said insurgents from a West African branch of al Qaeda, called Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal Muslimeen (JNIM), were responsible for the attacks, which Reuters could not immediately confirm.

An al Qaeda-linked group claimed responsibility on Friday for an attack on a military base in northeastern Mali, a day after authorities blamed the same group of carrying out a dual assault on another military camp and a boat that killed over 60. At least 49 civilians and 15 soldiers were killed when assailants attacked the boat on a waterway that connects the northern regions of Gao and Mopti and raided a camp in the Bourem Circle, in Gao region, which has become a hotbed of jihadist activity over the past decade.

Mali's interim government said insurgents from a West African branch of al Qaeda, called Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal Muslimeen (JNIM), were responsible for the attacks, which Reuters could not immediately confirm. JNIM separately said on Friday said it was behind a suicide attack on a military base adjacent to Gao International Airport, the Site Intelligence Group said.

Authorities have not yet commented on the second attack. One resident in Gao who did not wish to be named said vehicles exploded at the base and that there was gunfire exchanged between assailants and soldiers.

Malian media reported the attack and videos shared online showed smoke rising from area around the base while machinegun fire could be heard in the background. Reuters has not been able to verify the videos. Access to the city was closed off as fighting spilled outside its wall, the resident said, adding that the airport had been shut and soldiers placed in front of government buildings.

Mali is one of several West African countries battling violent insurgencies linked to al Qaeda and Islamic State that took root in Mali's arid north in 2012 before spreading across the region. Frustrations about growing insecurity have spurred military coups in the three worst-hit countries - Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger - since 2020, worrying global powers with strategic interests in the region.

BOAT ATTACK Attacks have worsened in Mali since the military seized power in two coups in 2020 and 2021, kicked out French forces and United Nations' peacekeeping mission, and teamed up with Russian private military contractor Wagner Group.

The U.N., which is in the process of departing, has handed over a series of northern bases to the army. Islamist groups have stepped up attacks following the void left by the departure of thousands of U.N. peacekeepers, and French soldiers in the north and east.

The U.N. peacekeeping mission MINUSMA condemned the attack on the boat. The boat was travelling from the city of Gao when it was hit. The operator, Comanav, usually transports residents and supplies on its boats.

But a Gao resident and a local official, who did not want to be named for security reasons, said on Friday that it had also been transporting military personnel. "We thought that if the jihadists learnt that there were soldiers on board, they would attack, and that's what happened," the resident told Reuters.

The attack on the army base occurred about 230 km (140 miles) north of Gao, a city which for years has been surrounded by violent assaults.