In 2020 and 2021, General Assimi Goita siezed power of Mali, bringing the country under military rule. Elections scheduled for February 2024 were postponed due to "technical reasons," including issues related to the adoption of a new constitution and a review of electoral lists. A new date has not been announced.

In June 2025, the National Transitional Council approved a bill granting Goita an additional five-year term, extending his presidency until at least 2030.

One of the main justifications for the coup was to improve the nation’s security amid a growing number of jihadist attacks. However, this plan has not worked, said Ahmed Ould Abdallah, president of the Sahel Sahara Center for Security Strategies.

"Not only has terrorism not disappeared, it is actually increasing and becoming more intense. It no longer affects only the north and center of the country, but also the south toward Sikasso, and the Kayes region in the west," he told DW.

In early June 2025, several Malian army positions were attacked by the al-Qaeda-affiliated Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims, known as JNIM. At least 30 people were killed in the attack on a camp. In September 2024, JNIM succeeded in attacking Bamako and occupied the airport for several hours. In July 2024, heavy fighting took place in the town of Tinzaouatene near the Algerian border. Tuareg separatists inflicted heavy losses on the Malian army and the Russian-backed Wagner Group.

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Fousseyni Ouattara, vice president of the........

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