2017 Timbuktu attack

Last updated
2017 Timbuktu attack
Part of Mali War
Entrance of the MINUSMA military camp in Timbuktu, September 2019.png
DateAugust 14, 2017
Location
MINUSMA base, Timbuktu, Mali
Result Indecisive
Belligerents

Flag of Mali.svg Mali
Flag of the United Nations.svg MINUSMA

AQMI Flag asymmetric.svg Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin
Casualties and losses
Flag of Mali.svg 6 killed, 1 injured
Flag of the United Nations.svg 6 injured
6 killed
1 civilian killed

On August 14, 2017, jihadists from Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin attacked a MINUSMA base in Timbuktu, Mali.

Contents

Prelude

Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin formed in 2017 as the coalition of five jihadist groups that rebelled against the Malian government in 2012. The group's first actions were ambushes and raids against Malian and French forces in the region. [1]

At the time of the attack, the MINUSMA base in Timbuktu was defended by three Burkinabe infantry companies, a Ghanaian engineering company, a Bangladeshi communications company, a Liberian infantry company, a Salvadoran helicopter company, a medical company and a company of Nigerian police, a Swedish reconnaissance and infantry company, a Cambodian mine clearance platoon, an Egyptian military police platoon and an Ivorian police company. [2]

The same day of the attack on Timbuktu, a similar one was carried out by JNIM at the MINUSMA base in Douentza, where a Malian soldier and a Togolese peacekeeper were killed, along with two attackers. [3]

Attack

At 2pm local time on August 14, a small group of jihadists attacked the MINUSMA base in Timbuktu. The jihadists shot at the Malian security guards on patrol with grenades and AK-47 fire. [4] [5] At least two attackers were able to enter the camp, but they were quickly shot down by the peacekeepers. [6] Around this time, French and Malian forces began to intervene against the jihadists. [4]

Thierry Oberle, a journalist at Le Figaro, stated that "The Blue Helmets came close to disaster on August 14. This summer Monday, some of the UN personnel were on leave when a commando sprayed the entry point with a rocket launcher from the headquarters of the International Force, killing five sentries. Obviously well informed, he neutralizes the server at the telecommunications centre, heads towards the restaurant and storms the office of the head of the mission along the way. The six terrorists are shot dead before they can commit a massacre. The bloody episode reaches it's epilogue during the night in the morgue, where two armed men seek to recover the corpses of their companions. Entrenched in their premises, the Malian gendarmes do not flinch. As for MINUSMA, it hesitates, then changes it's mind and chases away the attackers." [7]

Aftermath

MINUSMA reported that thirteen people were killed in the attack; five guards from a Malian security company, a Malian gendarme, a civilian contract agent from MINUSMA and six jihadists. [4] A Malian security guard and six peacekeepers were injured, two of them seriously. [4] The two seriously injured peacekeepers were Burkinabe. [8]

No group claimed responsibility for the attack, but Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin was suspected. [7] The United Nations Security Council condemned the attack. Mahamat Saleh Annadif, head of MINUSMA, called the attack "cowardly and despicable", while António Guterres, United Nations Secretary General, stated that the attack may constitute war crimes. [4]

Related Research Articles

On 14 April 2018, militants attacked the MINUSMA base in Timbuktu Airport, known informally as the "super camp". The JNIM later claimed responsibility for the attack, in reprisal for the deaths of some of their commanders in clashes that occurred about a week earlier.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amadou Koufa</span>

Amadou Koufa, nom de guerre of Amadou Diallo, also spelled Hamadoun Kouffa or Amadou Kouffa is a Malian Fulani jihadist and preacher who founded Katiba Macina, later part of Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Ber (2018)</span> 2018 battle of the Mali War

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coalition of the People of Azawad</span> Political and military party in Mali

The Coalition of the People of Azawad, also translated as the Coalition for the People of Azawad (CPA) is a Tuareg political and military movement formed in 2014 during the Mali War.

On January 27, 2018, militants from Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin and the Coalition of the People of Azawad attacked a Malian military base in Soumpi, Mali.

On November 24, 2017, jihadists from Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin ambushed Nigerien MINUSMA peacekeepers and Malian soldiers in the village of Indelimane, Mali.

On June 17, 2017, jihadists from Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin attacked Malian forces in Bintagoungou, Tombouctou Region, Mali.

The battle of Gourma-Rharous took place on April 18, 2017, between French and Malian forces against an attacking Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin.

On March 5, 2017, jihadists from Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin attacked Malian forces in Boulikessi. The attack was the first by JNIM since its inception that month.

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Abderrahmane Talha, also known as Abou Talha al-Mauritani or Talha al-Libyy, is a Mauritanian jihadist who is the wali of Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin's territory in Tombouctou Region.

On 11 June 2014, a suicide bomber attacked the MINUSMA base in Aguelhok, Mali, killing several Chadian peacekeepers.

On October 23, 2013, Katiba Salahadin militants attacked Chadian peacekeepers in the city of Tessalit, sparking a battle between the militants and Chadian and French forces. The attack was the first attack by jihadists targeting MINUSMA peacekeepers during the Mali War.

References

  1. "Le nord bascule (à nouveau) dans la violence : Silence des autorités maliennes". malijet.com. Retrieved 2023-12-04.
  2. "Rapport du Secrétaire général sur la situation au Mali" (PDF). United Nations Security Council. September 28, 2017. Retrieved December 4, 2023.
  3. "Mali : un soldat et un Casque bleu tués après des tirs contre un camp de l'ONU à Douenza – Jeune Afrique". JeuneAfrique.com (in French). Retrieved 2023-12-04.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 "Mali: neuf morts dont un Casque bleu lors de deux attaques contre l'ONU - L'Express". 2022-10-28. Archived from the original on 2022-10-28. Retrieved 2023-12-04.
  5. "Mali : un camp de la Minusma visé par des tirs à Tombouctou – Jeune Afrique". JeuneAfrique.com (in French). Retrieved 2023-12-04.
  6. "Mali: la Minusma visée par deux attaques meurtrières". RFI (in French). 2017-08-14. Retrieved 2023-12-04.
  7. 1 2 "À Tombouctou, les Casques bleus naviguent entre terroristes, rebelles et bandits". Le Figaro (in French). 2018-01-23. Retrieved 2023-12-04.
  8. "Mali : une attaque contre l'ONU à Tombouctou fait 6 morts – Jeune Afrique". JeuneAfrique.com (in French). Retrieved 2023-12-04.