Islamist militants attack five villages in central Mali
Islamist militants from the al-Qaeda affiliated JNIM attacked five villages in central Mali's Mopti region on May 21st.
Mali’s fight against Islamist terrorism has been undermined once again as jihadists attack five villages in central Mali, according to RFI and agencies on May 23rd.
On May 21st, militants from the al-Qaeda affiliated JNIM attacked five villages in the Bandiagara region, situated in the Mopti region.
Between 5 and 6 pm, JNIM attacked the Dimbal commune’s Logo, Soulakanda, and Dimbal; the Bankass commune’s Ogossagou and Kouroundé were also targeted.
Around 20 people were killed, including civilians and Dozo hunters; the latter sometimes assists Mali’s military (FAMA) and can compensate for FAMA’s absence in certain areas.
JNIM is behind the ongoing fuel blockade and is particularly active in northern and central Mali; JNIM announced a renewed blockade on Bamako on April 28th.
Suspected jihadist attacks killed at least 70 people in the Mopti region on May 6th and 8th; civilians and Dozo hunters were targeted.
While no group claimed responsibility for those attacks, JNIM and the Islamic State are active in the Mopti region.
On April 25th, JNIM and the Tuareg-led Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) launched coordinated attacks across northern Mali, which killed Defence Minister Sadio Camara and led the FLA to recapture Kidal.
Following the joint attacks, FAMA and the Russian Africa Corps claimed to have neutralised terrorists in the Ségou and Mopti regions by May 1st.
Russian auxiliaries and FAMA conducted strikes near Mopti’s Diafarabé region on May 15th against a “major refuge of armed terrorist groups.”
Violence experienced by Mopti residents is not limited to Islamist fighters, as FAMA has faced repeated allegations of killing civilians during raids of villages.
On May 17th, seven people were killed when a FAMA patrol entered the village of Guirowel in the Kounari commune.
FAMA’s presence also led village residents to flee out of fear; one resident described how soldiers “shot everyone who, in a panic, tried to flee.”
The resident added, “Since 2020, at least 31 residents of Guirowel have been killed or are missing after army raids in the village.”
Throughout 2025, Malian and Russian forces were implicated in 374 civilian deaths in northern and central Mali, according to data from a civil society group, the CD-DPA.
Maghrebi contacted the Malian Prime Minister’s Office for comment on JNIM’s May 21st attacks, but has not received a response at the time of publication.
RFI and agencies, Maghrebi.org
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