BAMAKO: Malian troops killed 11 extremists who had ambushed them in the center of the country, in clashes that also left one soldier dead, the defense ministry said.
Armed Tuareg groups supporting the government also reported assailants executed more than 20 people on Friday in a village in the northeast.
The attacks highlighted the fragile security situation in the West African nation as it prepares to hold elections on July 29, in which President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta is seeking a second term.
A army patrol was ambushed by “terrorists” on Sunday morning in a forest in the central region of Segou, the ministry said in a statement.
The patrol suffered “one dead and one wounded. On the enemy side, we counted 11 dead.”
In a separate incident on Friday, “armed men” attacked the village of Tindinbawen, near the border with Niger, according to a joint statement from the Imghad and Allies Tuareg Self-Defense Force (Gatia) and the Movement for the Salvation of Azawad (MSA).
The two mainly Tuareg groups support the French and Malian forces.
The “attackers proceeded to summarily execute more than 20 people including elderly people and at the same time some members of the security post of the coalition,” the statement said.
Mali’s unrest stems from a 2012 ethnic Touareg separatist uprising, which was exploited by extremists in order to take over key cities in the north.
The extremists were largely driven out in a French-led military operation launched in January 2013.
But large stretches of the country remain outside of the control of the foreign and Malian forces, which are frequent targets of attacks, despite a peace accord signed with Tuareg leaders in 2015 aimed at isolating the extremists.
The violence has also spilled over into both Burkina Faso and Niger.
Malian fores ‘kill 11 extremists’ in clashes following ambush
Malian fores ‘kill 11 extremists’ in clashes following ambush
- A army patrol was ambushed by “terrorists” on Sunday morning in a forest in the central region of Segou
- The patrol suffered “one dead and one wounded. On the enemy side, we counted 11 dead”
Swedish intelligence warns of increased Middle East war fallout
- “The threat has increased primarily against American, Jewish, Israeli interests or opposition figures” Hallstrom told AFP
- Hallstrom also said the war in the Middle East could have “considerable impact” on European security
STOCKHOLM: A top Swedish intelligence official on Thursday warned of increased threats against American and Israeli interests, as well as Iranian dissidents, in Sweden because of the war in the Middle East.
The Scandinavian country’s security, which had already deteriorated after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, has worsened since the US-Israeli strikes on Iran on Saturday unleashed a new war, according to Fredrik Hallstrom, head of operations for the Swedish Security Service (Sapo).
“The threat has increased primarily against American, Jewish, Israeli interests or opposition figures, rather than toward Sweden as a nation or country,” Hallstrom told AFP.
“I’m talking about opposition figures with such influence that they could actually either be perceived as a serious threat to the Iranian regime, or in fact be one,” he explained.
Hallstrom also said the war in the Middle East could have “considerable impact” on European security.
Police have taken measures to increase security around potential targets, such as embassies, he said.
Sapo has previously pointed to Iran, China and Russia as the main threats to the country.
It has accused Iran in particular of recruiting members of Swedish criminal gangs to commit “acts of violence” against Israeli and other interests in Sweden — a claim Iran denied.
Other risks highlighted by Sapo include increased intelligence activities in Sweden, surveillance and actions targeting Iranian dissidents in exile, as well as the acquisition of equipment, research and know-how that could contribute to the development of nuclear weapons.
“We know that Iran uses cyberattacks and hacks phones and computers in order to monitor others,” Hallstrom said.
He added that this monitoring could be potentially used to get individuals “in Sweden to provide information about other people, by exerting pressure.”
