Mali’s security forces yesterday “prevented” a “terrorist” act in an area near the capital Bamako, in which a police officer and two civilians were injured, the army announced.

The attack, committed yesterday at 01:40 [σ.σ. τοπική ώρα· 04:40 ώρα Ελλάδας]was targeting a position in Dialakoroba, in Kulikoro district, about fifty kilometers east of the capital, the armed forces said via Facebook.

Police officers reacted “vigorously” leading to “failure” of the “terrorists” attempt, he added.

The account of the victims speaks of three wounded, a policeman and two civilians. On the other side, “terrorist”, who was “abandoned by the perpetrators of the attack in their escape”, was “neutralized” [σ.σ. σκοτώθηκε].

Mali has been facing a deep security crisis since 2012, due to guerrilla warfare by groups that pledge allegiance to either al-Qaeda or the Islamic State, which has morphed into a Tuareg separatist insurgency in the north.

Jihadist activity gradually spread from the north to the central part of the country and neighboring Sahel states, Burkina Faso and Niger. Thousands of people were killed and millions forced from their homes.

After the overthrow of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita on August 18, 2020, the military junta demanded the departure of the French military Barchan, which has been operating in the country since 2012, and then the withdrawal of the UN peacekeeping mission (MINUSMA) by the end of this year .

The military regime, which keeps repeating that its main goal is the country’s national sovereignty and independence, has ended its alliance with France and its Western partners to deal with jihadist organizations and turned to Russia for military and political support.