Army launches airstrikes in central and northern Mali

Mali’s fight against terrorism has intensified as the Malian Armed Forces (FAMA) launched strikes across central and northern Mali, according to RFI and agencies on June 2nd.

In a June 1st statement, FAMA announced it had conducted strikes in the central Mopti region and Koulikouro between May 30th and 31st.

The May 30th strikes in the Faya forest area of ​​Koulikouro, roughly 40 kilometres from Bamako, reportedly “neutralised” “approximately 65 [terrorists].”

On May 31st, strikes targeted an alleged “terrorist hideout” in Sofara, near the Mopti region.

JNIM, an al-Qaeda-affiliated militia, is active in the Mopti region; the group is behind the fuel blockade Mali has experienced since September 2025.

Strikes were conducted in the northern Kidal region’s Etambar neighbourhood on June 2nd; rebels from the Tuareg-led Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) recaptured Kidal on April 25th.

Following coordinated attacks on April 25th by JNIM and the FLA, FAMA and its Russian auxiliaries have increased operations in northern and central Mali.

JNIM announced a renewed blockade of Bamako on April 28th; however, FAMA’s June 1st statement states that a convoy of 765 tanker trucks, travelling under military escort, was received by Bamako.

Despite the safe entry of tankers to Bamako, on June 1st, five passengers were killed when a bus struck a landmine in the Kati region, between Kassaro and Soribougou; the bus was travelling to Bamako

At least 12 buses were set ablaze by JNIM between Ségou and Bamako, along with several cars on May 9th and 10th; electrical infrastructure was also damaged on May 9th.

Since May 1st, FLA and JNIM militants have controlled Kidal’s Tessalit camps after they were deserted by the Russian Africa Corps; the FLA also claims to be holding over 200 FAMA troops captive in Kidal.

On May 27th, FAMA and Russian auxiliaries intensified their bombing campaign against Kidal, with drone strikes damaging houses and a mosque.

Russian and Malian forces utilised cluster bombs in the Timbuktu region’s Oubder and the Kidal region’s Tadjmart on May 17th.

Cluster bombs are prohibited under the 2010 Oslo Accords, which Mali ratified, due to the threat they pose to civilians.

FAMA has also faced criticism for the deaths of seven people after a FAMA patrol entered Kounari, a commune in the Mopti region, on May 17th; their presence triggered panic, and FAMA shot residents as they fled.

Maghrebi contacted the Malian Prime Minister’s Office for comment on the airstrikes between May 30th and June 1st, but has not received a response at the time of publication.

RFI and agencies, Maghrebi.org