Senegal Mali’s trade threatened when militants set trucks near Kayez

Mali’s military government has sought to calm anger at the siege by Islamic militants on the main highways, as truck drivers face deliberate ambush and attacks.

In a rare recognition of the seriousness of the situation that affects the non -coastal country, Prime Minister Abdouli said that the measures are underway to improve road security.

The blockade – a dangerous escalation of jihadist rebellion in Mali – especially affects fuel supplies, which may paralyze the country.

The Sahel region in West Africa is known as the World Terrorism Center, Calculate more than 50 % of all deaths associated with terrorism.

Many analysts say that the aim of the militants associated with al -Qaeda is to impose a blockade of the capital, Bamako.

The siege appears to have begun with the kidnapping and the subsequent release of six Senegalese truck drivers along the Dakar-Bamako corridor in early September.

This is not a new tactic By the charming rule of the virtue-Al-Nisrat al-Nisrat al-Islam, Walo Muslinin (JNIM)-but the scale is increasingly ambitious.

They imposed a siege on two main sites: the Kayes region – which works as a gateway to all the food supplies that enter Senegal through the road and the train, and Nioro -Du -SATAL – which is located on the main road linking Mali to Mauritania.

Reports say that Islamic fighters have set up checkpoints to restrict the flow of goods and blackmail “taxes” from merchants.

They are said to have ignited fuel tankers, trucks and buses, kidnapped foreign drivers and attacked convoys carrying fuel imports from Senegal and Mauritania.

It is said that the entire villages have been brought to an economic and economical road, with the closure of the markets, stopping transportation and disrupting public services.

JNIM suspected militants have installed a fuel truck ambush from Ivory Coast in Boghoni, in the southern Sikaso area of ​​Mali. Several trucks have been burned.

“Economic suffocation” is the goal of the militants, “said Mamado Budyan of Sheikh Anta University.

He and others refer to a strategic shift by militants, who no longer depend only on the military confrontation to confirm regional control.

Analysts fear that if it is successfully implemented, the siege was announced by JNIM on Kayes and Nioro-du-SAL It can paralyze west of Mali.

The financial army initially reduced the siege, as a spokesman for Souleymane Dembélé dismissed reports on the siege as a “war of coordination information by foreign media.”

He insisted on footage on social media from the vehicles besieged on the Dakar-Bamako Corridor from the context. “The video of the bus that was placed in April fire and is not related to the so -called siege.”

According to the spokesman for the army, “No systematic interruption of transportation” was noticed in the western Mali and the real challenge facing people in the Kais region is “the rainy season, not the actions of terrorist groups.”

Colonel Dembele also described Jinim’s activity as “the last moments of the enemy in the Gulf and in retreat.” It is often a refusal that financial officials have often used it since Junta has seized power five years ago.

Last week, the army said that it had made an air strike in the Jinim camp in Mousava, in Kayez, killing “dozens of militants” and destroying a site claimed to be used in logistical services and planning.

She said that the reinforcements were sent to Kaiz and Nuro de Sahel, where the army declared “hunting and destruction” along the main roads and a “large -scale attack” on the Dima Neuro Corridor.

The government media reported that the hostages were released during the operations, but they did not say their number.

It does not seem that such efforts made by the army have reduced the concerns of the local population and not disrupt their lives. Residents state that armed checkpoints are still in place, while transport companies have suspended operations and that truck drivers are still facing intimidation.

Kaiz is said to be about 80 % of gold production in the country, and he was also considered the “Senegal Gate” for Mali. It is a logistics center where international trade routes converge.

Mali is a coastal country that depends greatly on the ports adjacent to fuel, food and manufactured goods, so controlling Kayes is necessary.

The siege not only disrupts local life, but directly threatens the economic stability of Bamako.

“The Kais region has become a major strategic goal for JNIM, which it considers a vital space,” says the Dakar -based Timbocto Institute.

“The jihadists intend to disrupt the country’s supplies, or destabilize the financial economy, or even strangle them, isolate the capital Pamako and increase economic pressure on the financial transitional system,” she says.

The blockade also indicates the geographical expansion of the JNIM rebellion.

Traditionally, the group’s operations were concentrated in the north and central Mali – in Mobiti, Sugo and Tibokto. However, in recent years, JNIM has achieved great success in southern Mali, including the Sikasu and Culkoro regions.

By converting her attention to Kayes, the group not only expands its mark, but also threatens to surround Bamako.

Since 2012, Mali has been in the grip of a deep security crisis that is fueled by violence from groups belonging to al -Qaeda and the Islamic State (IS), as well as other armed militias.

Local and international media warn that Jinim’s recent isolating parts of southern Mali can pave the way for similar incursions into neighboring coastal countries.

The crisis emphasizes the limits of financial dependence on military power, with the support of the mercenaries of the Russian Corps of Africa, as is now known as the Vagner Group, which has not been recognized by its role in the operations.

By disrupting trade routes from Senegal and Mauritania, JNIM has shown that it could affect the influence in the west, which raises fears of expansion in those countries.

The Senegalese truck drivers (URS) blamed the militants and described the kidnapping of truck drivers as a threat to regional trade.

Mali is the main African trade partner of Senegal, which represents more than $ 1.4 billion (one billion pounds) in exports last year. The BAMakO-Kayes path carries fuel, cement, nutrients and important manufactured goods for both economists.

There is a risk that what started as a tactical disorder may develop into a long siege, which leads to the erosion of confidence in the state’s financial institutions and exposing fragility.

“Geneim’s option to target buses and carriers is not important – it aims to strike at the heart of social and economic movement in Mali,” said BAMADA.NET last week.

More than just a local scene, the siege of Kayez is a warning sign that the jihadist rebellion in Mali entered a new stage with the repercussions of economic sabotage that reaches beyond the borders of Mali.