Amnesty International issued a strong appeal on Friday (May 15, 2026), calling on the Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal Muslimeen (JNIM) jihadist group to uphold the safety and unrestricted movement of civilians across Mali. This urgent plea comes as civilians endure the severe repercussions of insurgent attacks, particularly the two-week road blockade imposed on the capital, Bamako, by the JNIM.
Since April 30, jihadist factions have obstructed several vital routes leading into Bamako. As a landlocked nation, Mali, including its capital, heavily relies on road-borne imports, making these blockades critically disruptive.
“The ongoing blockade of Bamako imposes unacceptable restrictions on civilian freedom of movement and risks leading to grave violations of their rights to food security, health, and life,” Amnesty stated in its communiqué.
The human rights organization specifically urged JNIM to adhere to international humanitarian law. It highlighted an attack on May 6 against a convoy of trucks transporting civilian goods, including fruits, between Bamako and Bougouni in the south. Amnesty emphasized that these trucks “were not escorted by the army and carried no military personnel or equipment.”
Malian army vows intensified strikes
Meanwhile, the Malian army has declared its intention to escalate airstrikes on Kidal in the coming days. The city has been under the control of Touareg rebels from the Front de Libération de l’Azawad (FLA) and their JNIM jihadist allies, also known as the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims, since late April. The Malian military confirmed conducting multiple strikes on Kidal, while Touareg separatists claim to be holding 200 Malian soldiers captured during the April 25 attacks.
A Kidal resident, reached for comment, described the city as experiencing electricity outages and unreliable phone connections, a problem extending to several other northern Malian towns.
On the ground, conflicting reports have left residents uncertain whom to trust.
A resident of Gao also described a climate of mistrust, despite the city being under Malian government control. “We are told to rely on government communiqués,” she explained. She informed DW that prices for essential food items have surged, with the cost of a kilogram of onions, for instance, having doubled.
According to Hervé Lankoandé Wendyam, an independent analyst specializing in political and security dynamics in West Africa, “there is a clear intent to detach the North from the rest of the country. What is unfolding in central Mali is largely JNIM’s ambition to escalate belligerence to a new level by seizing control of cities.”
The situation in central Mali
A source intimately familiar with central Mali described several areas as being under jihadist control, specifically mentioning the left bank of the Niger River in the Ségou region and a portion of the Koulikoro region. In these zones, state administration is reportedly absent.
Jihadists are collecting zakat, an Islamic tax, in hundreds of villages, and numerous schools remain closed. A report from late January indicated that over 2,300 schools were shut down across Mali, with the northern and central regions being the most affected.
Abdoulaye Sounaye, a researcher and expert on jihadist groups in the Sahel, suggests that the opposing forces are currently in a phase of observation, reorganization, and rearmament, particularly on the side of the Malian army.
“I have the impression that the government and the military regime are preparing to avenge the affront. Meanwhile, JNIM and FLA forces are also observing and preparing for a potential resumption of hostilities by the Malian army. Between these forces, obviously, there are populations who will continue to suffer abuses from one side or the other.”
An expert on the region believes that the solution to the security crisis in northern and central Mali, and more broadly across the country, lies in establishing dialogue with all parties involved.
“Today, the crisis is pervasive across various social groups. It is up to the government to determine how, alongside the national elite from all political persuasions, they can come together and overcome the crisis through settlement and negotiation. There is a political problem that the Malian government must endeavor to resolve. It can resolve it if it opens itself up. If the Malian government wishes to avoid an eternal crisis, the current government of Mali must declare its willingness to engage in genuine dialogue with all components of the country,” asserted Ahmed Ould Abdallah from the 4S center.
“I believe that sooner or later, these forces currently engaged will be compelled to convene around a table and reach an agreement,” predicted Abdoulaye Sounaye, Director of a research unit at the Leibniz-Zentrum Moderner Orient in Berlin, Germany.
However, Mali officially rejects any negotiation with the FLA and JNIM, which the Malian authorities label as terrorists. Despite this stance, secret negotiations were reportedly conducted between Malian military authorities and JNIM jihadists to facilitate fuel supplies to Mali.
