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President Donald Trump is reportedly considering launching military strikes in Mali to target an al-Qaeda-affiliated group, U.S. officials said.
The Trump administration is reportedly considering launching strikes against the al-Qaeda-affiliated group, Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin, or JNIM, which has claimed responsibility for a series of attacks and kidnappings since 2017. The group mostly operates in West African nations, and last month, it performed a lethal attack at an airport in Niger.
According to reports from the Washington Post, administration officials disagree on whether to attack the militant group. The report says that one advocate for launching the campaign is the National Security Council's senior director for counterterrorism, Sebastian Gorka.
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Neither Gorka, the Pentagon, nor the Malian government immediately commented on possible U.S. military strikes.
Interestingly, the White House did not directly comment on possible strikes. However, a spokesperson said that the U.S. has been pressuring governments in North and West Africa to "purchase U.S. equipment and services to support their war efforts against the terrorists."
Separately, an administration official told The Independent that it hopes the Alliance of Sahel States "prevails against terrorism, but the blame for the deteriorating security situation falls upon Russia, which has proven to be an ineffective security partner for Mali."
Mali is one of Africa's largest gold-producing nations, and it is among the alliance of military-controlled governments that have cut ties with Western nations and turned to Russian forces for security help after military coups toppled their democratic government. Other countries in the alliance include Burkina Faso and Niger.
"We hope that other African nations take note of Russia's terrible performance in combating terrorism," one administration official told The Independent.
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If the strikes are approved, Mali would become the eighth in a growing list of countries that President Trump has ordered to strike during his second term. The president has previously approved strikes in Iraq, Nigeria, Somalia, Syria, Venezuela, and Yemen, plus U.S. forces killed at least 200 people on alleged drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific Ocean.
In recent years, Mali has come to be controlled by several Islamist militant groups, including JNIM. The move has caused Mali and its neighbors to be considered the world's heartbeat for terrorism.
Last year, militants with JNIM coordinated a fuel blockade that paralyzed the country. Likewise, earlier this year, the group has engaged in several attacks, including seizing a strategic northern city from Mali's military and Russia, and then killing the country's defense minister in a suicide attack.
Possible Mali strikes come as war in Iran intensifies
The potential strikes in Mali come as Trump's war with Iran drags. On Wednesday, the president warned that the U.S. will destroy one bridge or power plant each time Iran shoots at a ship in the Strait of Hormuz.
The ongoing war threatens further worldwide economic disruption and could possibly send fuel prices up ahead of the midterm U.S. elections this fall. Both sides have dug in on their dispute over the strait, a crucial waterway for global energy that remains largely closed because of Iranian attacks.
Seyed Abbas Araghchi, Iran's foreign minister, said his country would adopt an "eye for an eye" defense doctrine.
"Any aggression against Iran, including our infrastructure, will compel a powerful and decisive response," he posted Wednesday on X.
The U.S. carried out another wave of strikes on Iran overnight into Wednesday, and air defenses opened fire over the capital, Tehran. Iran launched a missile attack on a Jordanian city on Israel's doorstep, and alerts were issued in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.
With negotiations largely stalled, both sides have sought leverage by targeting civilian infrastructure. Iran has responded to U.S. attacks by targeting energy infrastructure and desalination plants that provide drinking water in parched neighboring Gulf countries.
International law generally prohibits such attacks unless the infrastructure is being used for military purposes. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres decried such attacks as "unacceptable" on Tuesday.
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