Deadly Jihadist Assault in Mali’s Capital: Over 70 Killed in Military Training Camp Attack”

One of the bloodiest assaults in recent memory occurred in Bamako, the capital of Mali. The incident left over 70 people dead and around 255 injured. The attack, which took place on Tuesday, September 17, and targeted an airport and a military police training centre, has caused grave doubts about the ability of the military junta in power to control the continuous insurgency that has afflicted the nation for more than ten years.

The government admitted on state television that there had been casualties but withheld the number, claiming the uprising had been put down.

On Thursday, however, Agence France-Presse was informed by a security source that there had been 255 injuries and 77 fatalities. According to AFP, an official document that was verified and kept classified listed 81 names of the victims, with an estimated death toll of nearly 100. According to the Bamako daily Le Soir de Bamako, some fifty military police students were being laid to rest on Thursday.

At least fifteen people were taken into custody, according to a security officer who was inside the training camp during the incident and spoke to the Associated Press anonymously.

At the airport, there was also damage to a World Food Programme (WFP) aircraft. A representative for the World Food Program, Djaounsede Madjiangar, stated that the plane was utilised to “transport aid workers and provide emergency humanitarian aid in remote areas of Mali.”

“Although we use other planes in Mali, this limits our ability to provide humanitarian aid to civilians because we have multiple destinations,” he continued.

The aircraft, which National Airways Corporation, a South African aviation business, leased to the World Food Program, was attacked when it was in Bamako. Nobody on the crew or personnel was hurt.