Islamic State extremists have almost doubled the territory they control in Mali in less than a year, and their al-Qaida-linked rivals are capitalizing on the deadlock and perceived weakness of armed groups that signed a 2015 peace agreement, United Nations experts said in a new report. That’s when a military coup took place in March and rebels in the north formed an Islamic state two months later. JNIM is taking advantage of this weakening “and is now positioning itself as the sole actor capable of protecting populations against Islamic State in the Greater Sahara," they said. The panel added that Mali’s military rulers are watching the confrontation between the IS group and al-Qaida affiliates from a distance. The panel said terrorist groups, armed groups that signed the 2015 agreement, and transnational organized crime rings are competing for control over trade and trafficking routes transiting through the northern regions of Gao and Kidal.

Source: The North Africa Journal August 26, 2023 13:16 UTC