Insurgents overrun Mali base, killing dozens of soldiers

2/6/2025 19:03

An Al Qaeda-linked rebel group active in West Africa's Sahel region has claimed responsibility for an attack on a military base in Mali on Sunday that two sources said had killed more than 30 soldiers.



More than 400 soldiers have reportedly been killed by insurgents since the start of May in bases and towns in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, an unstable region prone to coups.



The jihadist group, Jama'a Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM), said in a statement on Sunday that it had seized the base in Boulkessi in central Mali, near the border with Burkina Faso.



The Malian army said it had been forced to pull back.



"Many men fought, some until their last breath, to defend the Malian nation," its statement said, without giving any casualty numbers.



A spokesperson did not respond to a question about the toll, but two security sources said more than 30 soldiers had been killed.