Mali marks independence amid a worsening security crisis

In Bamako, a fuel blockade has exposed the vulnerability of supply routes into the capital. On September 10, the Al Qaeda-affiliated armed group Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimeen (JNIM) attacked an army camp in Dioura. This attack followed an April offensive where JNIM and the Tuareg-led Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) coordinated attacks on military sites, highlighting the weakness of government forces.