| Raid on Dioura (2019) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Mali War | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Mali | |||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Mohamed Sidati Ould Cheikh † | Amadou Koufa | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| ~100 | Several dozen | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 26 killed (per Mali and UN) 17 injured | 3 killed (per JNIM) | ||||||
The raid on Dioura was an attack on a Malian military base in the town of Dioura, Mali, by Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin (JNIM) on March 17, 2019.
The town of Dioura is located in the west of Mali's Mopti Region. Throughout the late 2010s, the region had been a hotspot for Katibat Macina attacks, a group affiliated with JNIM. However, western Mopti had less frequent attacks compared to eastern Mopti. [1] At the time of the attack, the Malian base in the village was defended by a company of the Malian Army commanded by Mohamed Sidati Ould Cheikh. [2] Later, JNIM stated that Amadou Koufa led the raid on Dioura, in contrast to the Malian Army's claims that the raid was led by Ba Ag Moussa. [3]
The attack began on the morning of March 17, around 6am local time. [2] Several dozen jihadists launched the attack aboard pickups and motorcycles. [4] Some attackers infiltrated the town of Dioura prior to the fighting. [5] The raid began after an explosive-laden motorcycle driven by a suicide bomber rammed into the Dioura camp. [6] The camp was then attacked from the north and the southeast. [5] Malian soldiers at the camp put up a resistance that lasted several hours. [6] The jihadists then set several vehicles, including tank trucks and ammo storage, alight. [6] Around 4pm, the Malian government announced it had regained control of the Dioura camp. [2]
On March 18, the Malian government announced a provisional death toll of 23 killed and 17 wounded, with no Malian troops taken prisoner. [7] Several soldiers who were initially declared missing were later found in villages around 20 kilometers from Dioura. [7] A military source and local official stated the death toll was 21 Malian soldiers killed. [2] The Malian opposition, Front for the Safeguard of Democracy, announced a toll of over 20 killed, along with twenty missing, eight vehicles burned, and eight vehicles captured. [2]
The commander of the Malian forces, Mohamed Sidati Ould Cheikh, was killed in the battle. The bodies were buried on March 18 near Dioura. [2] On March 21, new bodies had been discovered, with the Malian government updating the death toll to 26 killed. [8] This was corroborated in a May 31, 2019 MINUSMA report. [9]
JNIM claimed that three of their fighters had been killed, along with the deaths of 30 Malian soldiers. [10] The group also claimed the capture of several vehicles and a cache of weapons. [11]
The raid on Dioura was the deadliest day for the Malian army since the Second Battle of Kidal in 2014. [6]
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.
Ba Ag Moussa was a Malian militant and jihadist.
The Mondoro attack took place on 4 March 2022, when al-Qaeda-linked jihadists attacked a Malian military base, causing heavy casualties.
On November 18, 2019, Malian troops were ambushed by the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara during a patrol of Tabankort, in Ménaka Cercle, Mali.
The battle of Boulikessi took place between September 30 and October 1, 2019. Jihadists from JNIM and Ansarul Islam attacked Malian bases in Boulikessi and Mondoro, killing between 40 and 85 Malian soldiers, making it the deadliest attack for the Malian army since the Second Battle of Kidal in 2014.
On April 21, 2019, Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin attacked a Malian military base at Guiré, Mali, as revenge for the Ogossagou massacre.
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 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.
On August 7, 2015, jihadists from Al-Mourabitoun and Katiba Macina attacked the Byblos Hotel in Sévaré, Mali. The attack was one of the largest attacks against civilians in Mopti Region during the Mali War, and led to the deaths of thirteen people, including five civilians.
The raid on Ténenkou took place on January 16, 2015, between Malian forces and jihadists of the Ansar Dine-affiliated Katiba Macina.
On January 5, 2015, militants from Katiba Macina and Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) overran Malian defenses and briefly captured the city of Nampalari, Mali.
The battle of Ber took place between August 11 and 12, 2023, between the Malian Armed Forces and the Wagner Group against fighters of the Coordination of Azawad Movements (CMA) and Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin (JNIM). The battle was the first major confrontation between the CMA and Malian forces since the signing of the Algiers Accords, and led to the breakdown of the accords by late 2023.
On September 28, 2023, rebels from the CSP-PSD attacked Malian bases in Dioura, Mali.
On November 24, 2023, jihadist militants from Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin (JNIM) attacked Malian forces at Niafunké, Mali.
On December 12, 2023, jihadist militants from Katiba Macina, an affiliate of the al-Qaeda aligned Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin (JNIM), attacked Malian forces in the town of Farabougou. The attack killed dozens of Malian soldiers and was the first major raid in the town by JNIM since the Siege of Farabougou in 2020.
On May 14, 2019, jihadists from Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (ISGS) attacked Nigerien forces in Baley Beri, Niger, killing twenty-seven Nigerien soldiers.
On August 19, 2019, jihadists from the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara attacked Burkinabe forces in Koutougou, Soum Province, Burkina Faso. 24 Burkinabe soldiers were killed in the attack, and Burkinabe authorities were forced to abandon military outposts in several northern Burkinabe towns following the attack. The attack was the deadliest jihadist attack in Burkinabe history up to that point.
On November 14, 2021, jihadists from Ansarul Islam and Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal-Muslimin attacked the mining town of Inata, Burkina Faso, the last place in Djibo Department under Burkinabe government control at the time of the attack. The Burkinabe outpost in Inata was overrun and over fifty soldiers were killed. The attack was the deadliest ambush against Burkinabe forces since the start of the jihadist insurgency in Burkina Faso in 2015, and was a primary reason for the January 2022 Burkina Faso coup d'état.
