BAMAKO, April 29 (Reuters) – Malian forces are back in control of a town on the Niger border that Islamic State-linked insurgents entered this week, residents said on Wednesday, as they pushed to regain control of territory following coordinated attacks over the weekend.
Mali’s military leader Assimi Goita made his first appearance on Tuesday since al Qaeda-linked insurgents and a coalition of mostly Tuareg separatists launched their assault on Saturday, killing the defence minister and delivering a blow to Russian mercenaries backing the army.
The attacks risked triggering a scramble for territory across Mali’s vast desert north, raising the prospect of significant gains by armed groups that have shown an increasing willingness to strike neighbouring countries and, analysts say, could eventually set their sights further afield.
Two residents in the town of Menaka, near the Niger border, told Reuters that fighters from Islamic State in the Sahel Province, an Islamic State affiliate, had retreated after clashes with the army, which had resumed land and air patrols.
A senior diplomatic source also said the army had reasserted control there.
MALIAN TROOPS STEP UP PATROLS
In Mali’s central Mopti region, which was hit by the weekend attacks, calm had also returned as of Wednesday, though people remained uneasy and on high alert, a resident said.
The army appeared to have increased checkpoints and stepped up ground and air patrols around the city, he said.
A resident of Gao, the biggest city in northern Mali, reported an increase in army patrols as civilians braced for further attacks.
In the central town of Sevare, tensions remained high on Wednesday, according to a witness, who said shots had been heard overnight.
On Monday the witness saw dead bodies, including civilians, soldiers and insurgents, and said the hospital morgue was full to capacity.
After disappearing from public view for several days, Goita on Tuesday vowed to neutralise those responsible for Saturday’s attacks, which featured open coordination between the al Qaeda-linked insurgents and the Tuareg separatists, who seized the strategic town of Kidal from Russian-backed Malian forces.
Goita also met with the Russian ambassador on Tuesday and visited a hospital where the wounded were receiving treatment.
(Reporting by Mali newsroom; Additional reporting by Jessica Donati, Giulia Paravicini and Portia Crowe; Writing by Jessica Donati; Editing by Robbie Corey-Boulet and Gareth Jones)
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