Amid a combined offensive by Tuareg and jihadist fighters against the Bamako junta at dawn on 25 April the killing of Defence Minister General Sadio Camara the architect of the defence partnership with Russia has struck a symbolic blow against General Assimi Goïta's regime...

‘The changes that have been introduced to the mining code since the second coup by Assimi Goïta have been incremental ' said one analyst we consulted...

The chairmanship of the G5 Sahel security alliance should have passed to Mali led by junta leader Assimi Goïta...

Mali's leader Gen Assimi Goïta sees his deal with Canada's Barrick Gold – in which the junta received CFA 244 billion (US$430 million) in back taxes and duties ahead of the reopening of Loulo-Gounkoto complex regarded as the world's biggest gold mine – as a vindication of his tough negotiating tactics including the detention of Barrick staff...

SlopagandaNone of the three AES leaders – General Assimi Goïta in Mali Captain Ibrahim Traoré in Burkina Faso and General Abdourahmane Tiani in Niger admits he is losing a war (AC Vol 66 No 12 Jihadists hit harder as junta loses focus Vol 66 No 17 General Tiani tightens grip as regional rumblings grow louder & Vol 66 No 6 Captain Traoré digs in for a long stay)...

Colonel Assimi Goïta's junta faces a blockade of the Bamako region led by Jama'at Nusrat al Islam wal Muslimeen a group of Islamist insurgents linked to Al Qaida in the Sahel...

As consumers sit in long queues for the ever more expensive dribble of petrol and diesel that does still get through President Assimi Goïta's regime has reacted by accusing traders of speculation stepping up its sovereigntist rhetoric and intensifying the crackdown on domestic critics...

Opposition down but not out The crisis in Kayes is occurring as the government tries to consolidate control with President Assimi Goïta confirmed as head of state for a five more years all political parties shut down and relentless repression of critics...

JIHADIST INSURGENTS HIT MALI-SENEGAL LINK DISRUPTING REGIONAL TRADE The junta leader in Mali General Assimi Goïta and his military allies in Russia's Africa Corps (former fighters in the Wagner Group) make much of the dangers posed by the Touareg separatist fighters such as the Front de libération de l'Azawad (FLA) – but they downplay the vastly more threatening advances by Jihadist insurgents (AC Vol 66 No 12 Jihadists hit harder as junta loses focus)...

Grim casualty figures from recent insurgent attacks on army garrisons across central and northern Mali have exposed the cost of junta leader General Assimi Goïta's decision to reject the 2015 Algiers peace accord and to redirect military efforts towards fighting secular Tuareg separatists of the Front de libération de l'Azawad (FLA) (AC Vol 56 No 13 A peace deal against all odds & Vol 64 No 4 Restive Tuareg ramp up tension)...

Junta crushes political but not armed opponents Violence and fragmentation across central and northern Mali coincide with renewed political tensions in Bamako triggered by General Assimi Goïta's 13 May ban on political parties – supposedly in preparation for a future electoral process strictly on the regime's terms (Dispatches 12/5/25 After extending General Goïta's term until 2030 the junta bans protests)...

In Mali General Assimi Goïta's regime is clashing with Canada's Barrick Gold (AC Vol 66 No 3 Sahel-exit tests western miners and Russia's military muscle)...