Armed men strike military school in Mali capital

Armed men attacked a military training school in Mali’s capital, Bamako, during an early morning assault in which numerous areas across the city were targeted, the authorities said.

In its statement, the army described the assailants as “terrorists”.

After residents reported hearing gunfire on Tuesday, the army said the attackers had struck a gendarmerie school near the city’s airport but that the situation was now “under control”.

Mali is one of several West African countries that have been fighting an Islamist insurgency for more than a decade. However, it is not clear who was behind Tuesday’s shooting.

“Early this morning, a group of terrorists tried to infiltrate the Faladie gendarmerie school,” the army said in its statement.

The school was among a number of “sensitive points” “targeted by terrorist attacks” at dawn, the security ministry said.

No mention has been made of any casualties. However, two members of the security forces told news agency AFP they had been wounded in the attack.

The security ministry assured residents that in the wake of the attack they could carry on with their activities as normal. In contrast, international organisations such as the UN have reportedly advised their staff to restrict their movement.

Videos posted earlier on social media showed black plumes of smoke rising from a part of the city.

As shots rang out, people heading to the mosque for morning prayers had to turn back, news agency Reuters said.

Bamako’s Modibo Keita International Airport has been closed following the attack.

The military seized power in a coup in 2021, accusing the government of failing to do enough to quell the insurgency.

The military expelled French troops and UN peacekeepers and brought in Russia’s Wagner group to help fight the jihadists, but there is no sign of the insurgency ending.