JOHANNESBURG: The U.S.is reportedly considering airstrikes against al Qaeda-linked terrorists in Mali, according to regional analysts and recent media reports.The military junta that has been running this West African country in the Sahel region since coups in both 2020 and 2021 turned away from France and the U.S.
to get military protection from Russia and its Africa Corps mercenaries against jihadist groups.But now the largest of these groups, Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), which has Mali’s capital under siege, is credited, along with another group, for killing 50 Malian soldiers this month, for the death of the country’s defense minister earlier this year and has reportedly sent battalions of Russian soldiers retreating on at least two occasions this year.ISIS POISED TO EXPLOIT HISTORIC US IRAQ EXIT, TERROR GROUP 'ACTIVELY WAITING IN THE GAPS,' EXPERT WARNSMalian troops parade during the country's 65th anniversary of the African nation's independence.(Habib Kouyate/Xinhua via Getty Images)JNIM is said to want to change the country into an Islamist Jihadist state.
If they succeed, Mali would be the first country in the world to be run by a jihadist group.The organization was designated officially as a Foreign Terrorist Organization during the first Trump administration in 2018.Islamic State (ISIS) jihadist groups are also operating freely in Mali, and are linked to terror groups in neighboring Nigeria.A State Department official didn’t respond to a Washington Post report that the U.S.
is considering strikes against JNIM in Mali, but used strong language Thursday when talking to Fox News Digital, leading analysts to suggest the time for talking may be over."The United States unequivocally condemns the terrorist activity in Mali," the official said, adding, "in the Sahel, the United States is committed to promoting regional ownership and cooperation against terrorist threats, and monitoring indicators and warnings of threats to our homeland....