Al-Qaeda-Linked Rebels Attack Mali's Largest Prison, Block Food Supplies to Capital
Al Jazeera Staff
JNIM militants attacked Mali's largest prison, holding high-value prisoners, and blocked food trucks to Bamako. The assault is part of a second wave of violence in two weeks, following attacks on military bases and the killing of Defense Minister Sadio Camara. The blockade threatens a humanitarian crisis across the country.
Fighters from Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), an al-Qaeda-linked group, have attacked Kenieroba Central Prison — often called "Africa's Alcatraz" — about 60 kilometers southwest of the capital Bamako. The prison holds 2,500 inmates, including 72 prisoners Mali's military junta considers "high-value," many of them JNIM combatants and individuals captured after large-scale attacks in late April.
Al Jazeera reporter Nicolas Haque said Malian security forces were pushing back the assault. Simultaneously, the attackers torch several food trucks en route to the capital, severely disrupting supply chains.
This marks the second wave of violence in less than two weeks. On April 25-26, JNIM, in coordination with the Tuareg separatist Azawad Liberation Front (FLA), attacked multiple military bases, seized the northern city of Kidal, and killed Defense Minister Sadio Camara and his family at their home in Kati. At least 23 others died in those attacks. On May 4, junta leader Assimi Goita assumed the defense portfolio himself.
Following the assaults, a wave of arrests has occurred. According to security sources, opposition figures including Mountaga Tall (a lawyer arrested May 2 in Bamako on charges of plotting to overthrow the government), Youssouf Daba Diawara, and Moussa Djire (both suspected of links to exiled opposition members) were abducted by masked individuals. The military prosecutor's office stated on May 1 it had "solid evidence" of "complicity" by certain soldiers in "planning, coordinating, and executing" the attacks.
The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) issued a report on May 5 expressing "deep concern" over alleged extrajudicial executions and abductions by security forces following the attacks.
JNIM has called on Mali's population to rise up against the government and to adopt Islamic law. The group also declared it would besiege Bamako, a city of 4 million, and has set up checkpoints around it. Haque warned the blockade could trigger a humanitarian catastrophe: "Al-Qaeda fighters with 12.7mm machine guns are blocking all vehicles. Social media shows them stopping food trucks. The blockade doesn't just affect Bamako — it impacts all of Mali."
On May 3, the mayor of Diafarabe village in the Mopti region pleaded for government action, saying the village had run out of food and residents faced starvation.
