The army in junta-ruled Mali on Saturday battled what it called "terrorist groups" that launched surprise attacks around the capital Bamako and other parts of the west African nation.
Helicopters buzzed over Bamako and around the international airport and fighting was reported at a nearby military base in what is one of the most complex attacks the military has faced since seizing power.
Witnesses reported intense fighting in a town near the capital where junta leader General Assimi Goita lives and other key cities in the nation, which has been stricken by more than a decade of jihadist conflict.
Tuareg rebels in the Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) coalition said they had seized the northern city of Kidal. AFP was not immediately able to verify the claim.
The Malian junta, which seized power in coups in 2020 and 2021, has labelled the FLA a "terrorist" group.
A Malian army statement said: "Terrorist groups, not yet identified, early this morning targeted certain points and barracks in the capital and the interior" of the country.
"We call on the population to be vigilant. Our defence and security forces are engaged in annihilating the attackers," the statement added.
The fighting, which started at dawn, was still going Saturday afternoon on the outskirts of Bamako and in several other cities, particularly Kidal.
African Union chair Mahmoud Ali Youssouf denounced the violence, which risks "exposing civilian populations to significant harm".
- 'Heavy' fighting -
Fighting was reported around Bamako, at Gao and Kidal in the north, as well as in the central city of Sevare.
Heavy gunfire could be heard in the Bamako suburb of Kati, where Goita has his residence.
As shooting and helicopters flew over Bamako, an army statement said: "The situation is under control", adding that "several terrorists have been neutralised and equipment destroyed".
One resident said jihadists had taken a military camp in the Samakebougou neighbourhood of Kati and that there was "heavy" fighting.
The junta chief's whereabouts were unknown.
There was also intense speculation over Defence Minister General Sadio Camara after residents said a powerful blast had destroyed most of his home in Kati. Camara's entourage insisted he was not present at the time and was "safe".
The streets of the capital were deserted amid sporadic firing, an AFP correspondent reported.
The US embassy in Mali urged US citizens in and around the city to "shelter in place".
- Governor 'taken refuge' -
The Tuareg FLA said in a Facebook statement: "The city of Kidal has come under the control of our armed forces."
An FLA spokesman, Mohamed Elmaouloud Ramadane, told AFP: "Our FLA troops control Kidal, most of Kidal.
"The governor of Kidal has taken refuge with his men in the former camp of MINUSMA," he added, referring to the former UN mission in Mali.
The spokesman posted a photo on Facebook he said was a military camp in Kidal that had been occupied by "Russian mercenaries" and the Malian army.
Mali's junta is locked in struggles with both the FLA and jihadist groups.
Observers say the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM), an Al-Qaeda-linked jihadist group, has recently been seeking to join forces with the FLA.
Russia's mercenary Wagner Group, which had been helping Malian forces fight jihadists since 2021, ended its involvement in June 2025. It has since become the Africa Corps, an organisation under the direct control of the Russian defence ministry.
Since September, the JNIM has been attacking fuel tanker convoys heading for the capital, bringing Bamako to a standstill at the height of the crisis last October.
- Ties severed with West -
Mali has resources including gold and other valuable minerals. But since 2012, it has been grappling with a security crisis over attacks by jihadist groups affiliated with Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group and community-based criminal groups and separatists.
The military used the crisis to justify its takeover.
The government, like its military counterparts in neighbouring Niger and Burkina Faso, has severed ties with former colonial ruler France and several Western countries, moving closer politically and militarily to Russia.
The junta had pledged to hand over power to civilians by March 2024, but in July 2025 granted Goita a five-year presidential term, renewable "as many times as necessary" and without an election.
Thousands of people have died in attacks in Mali since the jihadist turmoil erupted. Tens of thousands of Malians have sought refuge in neighbouring countries in recent years.
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