A militant attack in the Malian capital targeting a military police training camp and a military airport left more than 70 dead and 200 wounded, one of the highest tolls suffered by the security forces in recent years.
A security source speaking on condition of anonymity told AFP news agency that 77 people had been killed and 255 wounded in Tuesday’s attacks in Bamako.
An authenticated confidential official document put the toll at around 100, naming 81 victims.
Thursday’s edition of Le Soir daily reported that the funerals of around 50 military police students would take place that day.
Mali’s military-led authorities have so far not released a precise death toll from the attacks, claimed by the Al Qaeda-linked JNIM group.
The operation was the first of its kind in years and dealt a forceful blow to the ruling junta, experts say.
The Malian capital is normally spared the sort of attacks that occur almost daily in some parts of the West African country.
The general staff admitted late on Tuesday that “some human lives were lost”, notably personnel at the military police centre.
JNIM claimed that a few dozen of its fighters had killed and wounded “hundreds” from the opposing ranks, including members of the Russian paramilitary group Wagner.
The attack came a day after junta-led Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso marked a year since the creation of their breakaway grouping, the Alliance of Sahel States (AES).
The trio have been under military rule following a string of coups since 2020, and in January said they were breaking ties with regional bloc ECOWAS.
Mali has since 2012 been ravaged by different factions affiliated to Al Qaeda and Daesh.
Condemnation
Volleys of gunfire interspersed with explosions broke out in Bamako at around 0500 GMT on Tuesday.
JNIM militants attacked a military police school and stormed part of the nearby airport complex, where a military facility adjoins the civilian one.
Gunfire continued for much of the day Tuesday near the airport, officials and an AFP correspondent reported.
The armed group broadcast images showing fighters strolling around and firing randomly into the windows of the presidential hangar and destroying aircraft.
The flow of information is restricted under the ruling junta and details on how the attack was carried out and its impact are sketchy.
In hitting sensitive military targets in the capital, JNIM struck a forceful blow to the ruling junta, underscoring its two-pronged strategy of territorial expansion and harassment, experts said.
“It also signals the inability of Mali’s intelligence and security apparatus –– along with those of its Russian and regional allies –– to detect and intercept the plot beforehand,” Lucas Webber, from Tech Against Terrorism, told AFP.
African Union Commission Chairman Moussa Faki Mahamat on Thursday “firmly condemned” the terrorist attacks on Bamako.
In a statement, he launched “an urgent appeal to strengthen strategic regional and international collaboration in the fight against the resurgence of terrorism” in West Africa.
The Economic Community of West African States on Wednesday also strongly condemned the attacks and reiterated “its strong commitment in favour of any initiative” favourable to peace.