Attack by al-Qaeda linked group in Mali killed more than 70 people
Al Jazeera
Attack on police training academy and nearby airport one of the worst since unrest began more than a decade ago.
More than 70 people are thought to have been killed in an attack by an al-Qaeda-linked group on Mali’s capital Bamako earlier this week, according to diplomatic and security sources.
Hardline fighters from the Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wa al-Muslimeen (JNIM) carried out the attack on an elite police training academy and the nearby airport on Tuesday, prompting shock and anger in the West African country.
A security source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the AFP news agency that 77 people had been killed and 255 injured in the attack.
An authenticated confidential official document put the toll at about 100, identifying 81 victims, AFP added.
Two diplomats serving in the region, including one based in Bamako, told the Reuters news agency the death toll was believed to be in the 70s.
