This archive report was first published on 11 July 2020.
Violence has gripped the Malian capital Bamako as the opposition alliance, the June 5 Movement, continues to push for President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita's resignation. The unrest has resulted in the deaths of at least four people and injured around 50 others, according to opposition leader Soumeylou Boubèye Maïga Cisse.
On Friday, thousands of protesters took to the streets in Bamako, demanding Keita's resignation over a long-running jihadist conflict, economic woes, and perceived government corruption. The protest was the third such demonstration in less than two months, significantly escalating pressure on the 75-year-old president.
Security forces responded with force, attacking parliament and ransacking the national television station. Keita warned that security would be maintained 'with no signs of weakness', but signalled his willingness 'to do everything possible to calm the situation'.
As the situation continues to escalate, the June 5 Movement has vowed to maintain and step up the mobilisation until Keita resigns. The alliance has called on the public to engage in civil disobedience, including not paying fines, blocking entry to state buildings, and occupying crossroads.
On Saturday, officials counted the cost of the violence, with the head of the state-run television and radio network, Salif Sanogo, stating that the material damage had been considerable, including six vehicles burnt and the server of the news programme damaged.
Such fighting is rare in Bamako, which has been spared much of the violence that is routine across swathes of Mali. The country has struggled to contain an Islamist insurgency that first emerged in the north in 2012, before spreading to the centre of the country and to neighbouring Burkina Faso and Niger.
Thousands of soldiers and civilians have been killed and hundreds of thousands of people have been forced from their homes. The opposition's call for civil disobedience is a significant escalation of the crisis, which has been ongoing for months.
