Mali Releases Jihadists in Deal to Ease Attacks
Last update: March 22, 2026
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Mali has faced disruption in fuel supply since attacks by Jihadists...
Mali has reportedly freed more than 100 suspected jihadists in recent days as part of a deal to stop attacks on fuel convoys that have disrupted supplies in the country.
Officials and security sources revealed on Sunday, according to the AFP.
Since September, fighters linked to the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM), an affiliate of Al-Qaeda, have targeted tanker convoys, worsening fuel shortages and paralysing activity in the capital, Bamako, at the peak of the crisis in October.
A local elected official said more than 100 detainees suspected of links to jihadist groups were released in exchange for opening a corridor to allow fuel trucks to pass safely.
“We learned this week that more than a hundred young people accused of being jihadists have been released by the state security services, and in return, fuel convoys have not been attacked,” another elected representative from central Mali told the news agency.
Security sources said the arrangement is expected to hold until the Muslim festival of Eid al-Adha, known locally as Tabaski, at the end of May.
An association representing the Fulani community said many of those released were from the ethnic group, which has often been linked to jihadist activity in the region.
Mali has faced a deepening security crisis since 2012, driven by armed groups affiliated with Al-Qaeda and Islamic State, as well as criminal networks operating across the Sahel.
