Sokolo attack

On January 26, 2020, jihadists from the al-Qaeda linked Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin (JNIM) attacked a Malian military base at Sokolo, killing over 20 Malian soldiers.

Sokolo attack
Part of Mali War
DateJanuary 26, 2020
Location
Sokolo, Mali
Result JNIM victory
Belligerents
Mali Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin
Commanders and leaders
Hanoura Sangare † Unknown
Strength
80 ~100
Casualties and losses
20 killed
5 wounded
3 captured (per JNIM)		 3 killed (per JNIM)
4 killed (per Mali
53 civilians killed in post-attack killings

Attack

At around 5 am, around a hundred JNIM fighters stormed the camp at Sokolo, which was being held by about eighty Malian soldiers.[1][2] JNIM attacked from the north, south, and east, causing many of the stationed soldiers to flee into the town of Sokolo.[3][4] Fighting ended around 7 am, at which point the jihadists began to destroy nearly everything in the base.[1][2] The fighters retreated after burning the base to the ground, and around this time Malian reinforcements from Diabaly arrived.[5][3]

Casualties and aftermath

The Malian government stated on the evening of January 26 that 20 Malian soldiers were killed and five wounded.[6] The government also claimed four jihadists were killed in the attack, although JNIM only alleges three were killed.[7][8] In a statement, JNIM claimed to have captured 3 Malian soldiers, which could not be independently verified.[6] In the following days, it was reported that the captain at the military base, Harouna Sangare, was killed during the fighting.[9] 60 of the Malian troops, mainly those who fled, survived the attack.[10]

The UN reported that 53 civilians were killed by Malian troops in Sokolo around January 27, sparking a rise in extrajudicial killings by the Malian army.[11]

References
  1. Afrique, Le Point (2020-01-26). "Mali : le Centre toujours la cible des djihadistes". Le Point (in French). Retrieved 2023-02-09.
  2. "19 Killed in Attack on Mali Army Base Near Mauritania Border". VOA. Retrieved 2023-02-09.
  3. "Au Mali, les djihadistes du GSIM se rappellent au mauvais souvenir du G5 Sahel". Le Monde.fr (in French). 2020-01-27. Retrieved 2023-02-09.
  4. "At Least 20 Mali Soldiers Killed in JNIM Attack on Sokolo Camp - HS Today". 2020-01-27. Retrieved 2023-02-09.
  5. "Mali: un camp de gendarmes attaqué par des hommes armés dans le centre". RFI (in French). 2020-01-26. Retrieved 2023-02-09.
  6. "JNIM targets military bases in central Mali | FDD's Long War Journal". www.longwarjournal.org. 2020-01-28. Retrieved 2023-02-09.
  7. "MALI : Le GSIM revendique l'attaque de Sokolo qui a coûté la vie à 20 gendarmes". DAKARACTU.COM (in French). Retrieved 2023-02-09.
  8. "Mali : vingt morts dans l'attaque d'un camp de gendarmes à Sokolo". Le Monde.fr (in French). 2020-01-26. Retrieved 2023-02-09.
  9. "Urgent : Le camp de la gendarmerie de sokolo (Ségou) attaqué. 20 morts (provisioire)". Maliactu. January 26, 2020. Archived from the original on October 20, 2021. Retrieved February 9, 2023.
  10. "Mali: Militants on motorbikes kill 20 troops, officials say". BBC News. 2020-01-26. Retrieved 2023-02-09.
  11. "Malian army responsible for 101 extrajudicial killings at start of 2020 - UN report says". RFI. 2020-05-02. Retrieved 2023-02-09.
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