Mali’s defense minister, Sadio Camara, was killed in an attack on his residence near Bamako on Saturday, according to multiple reports emerging on Sunday.
The assassination occurred in Kati, a garrison town just outside the capital, where Camara had been serving as minister of defense since June 2021. He previously held the same position from October 2020 to May 2021, following his role in the 2020 coup that removed President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta from power.
Camara, a graduate of the Joint Military School in Koulikoro, was a central figure in Mali’s military leadership and had taken part in the August 2020 coup alongside Colonel Assimi Goïta. His death marks a significant escalation in the country’s ongoing security crisis, which has seen intensified activity by jihadist groups and separatist forces in recent months.
Reports indicate the attack was carried out by Islamic militants, though no group has officially claimed responsibility. The incident underscores the volatile security situation in Mali, where extremist violence continues to challenge state authority despite the presence of international and regional forces.
At 47 years old, Camara is the highest-ranking Malian official to be killed in an attack since the onset of the Mali War. His death comes amid heightened tensions following a series of coordinated assaults on locations in Bamako and other cities reported just hours earlier.
