Report: Trump administration considering military strikes in Mali
As part of a new counter-terrorism strategy
Written by Ziad Abdel Fattah:
The newspaper revealed Washington Post The administration of US President Donald Trump is considering carrying out military operations inside Mali targeting the “Support for Islam and Muslims” group, as part of a comprehensive review of US counterterrorism policy in the Sahel region of Africa, in light of the escalating activity of armed groups in the region.
The newspaper, in a report published Wednesday, quoted an unnamed White House official as saying that Washington is working to encourage its regional partners and NATO allies to provide support to the Sahel Alliance, which includes Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, in its operations against the “Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin” group and the “Islamic State” organization.
The US administration has not yet made a decision.
According to the report, Sebastian Gorka, the senior director for counterterrorism at the US National Security Council, is a leading supporter of the option of launching military strikes inside Mali, but the US administration has not yet made a final decision on implementing this step.
The official added that the United States is encouraging North and West African countries to strengthen their military capabilities by purchasing American defense equipment and services, with the aim of supporting counterterrorism efforts, while criticizing the Russian role in Mali, describing Moscow as an “ineffective security partner” for the Malian government.
The US State Department condemns terrorist activities in Mali
In its comments on the report, the US State Department reiterated its condemnation of terrorist activities in Mali, stressing the Trump administration’s commitment to working with its partners to counter security threats, but declined to confirm or deny the existence of plans to carry out military operations inside Malian territory.
The report noted that the US administration intensified intelligence sharing with the Malian government during the past year, explaining that this information was used in operations carried out by the Malian army against armed groups, in a shift from the approach taken by the administration of former President Joe Biden, which was characterized by a more conservative policy in military cooperation with Bamako.
The newspaper also quoted former US official Peter Pham as confirming that limiting the expansion of al-Qaeda and ISIS in the Sahel region is a strategic priority for the United States, calling for rebuilding trust with the governments of Mali and Niger, despite the limited direct US economic interests in the region.
This development comes at a time when relations between Washington and Bamako are witnessing a marked improvement, following an exchange of visits between officials from both countries, along with reports that spoke of an approaching understanding that would allow the resumption of US drone flights over Malian territory to gather intelligence and monitor the movements of armed groups.
