Militants in Mali Block Fuel Imports, Squeezing Fragile Economy
Gas tanks are running on empty in the West African nation of Mali. Jihadi militants have blockaded fuel imports, squeezing the country’s resources and stalling regular operations.
Mali has been fighting with jihadi militants from the al Qaeda-backed Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) group for decades. In early September, the group announced a ban on fuel imports from neighboring countries into Mali in response to authorities’ restrictions on fuel supplies sent to remote areas—a measure taken to pressure jihadists out of their hideouts, the Associated Press (AP) reported.
The blockade has left hundreds of fuel trucks stranded at the border, with some burned and destroyed. JNIM militants have also targeted transport companies along major roads, forcing some to stop fuel operations.
Malians have queued for hours to try to get fuel for motorcycles and cars, but with little success, according to the AP. Most are resorting to walking or staying home.
Schools and universities nationwide will be shut for two weeks because fuel scarcity makes it difficult for staff to get to work, announced Education Minister Amadou Sy Savane on 26 October. He added that authorities were “doing everything possible” to restore fuel supplies before the education hiatus ends on 10 November.
Fuel restrictions are also in place now, with priority given at dedicated fuel stations to emergency, assistance, and public transportation vehicles.
Mali struck a deal with Russia earlier this month to provide more fuel and supplies—between 160,000 and 200,000 metric tons of petroleum and agricultural products—but it’s unclear what kind of products would be delivered and when, Reuters reported.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Embassy in Mali told American citizens to leave the country by plane because of the threats of terrorism and the severe fuel crisis.
“U.S. citizens should depart using commercial aviation, as overland routes to neighboring countries may not be safe for travel due to terrorist attacks along national highways,” according to a security alert from the embassy in Bamako, Mali’s capital city. “U.S citizens who choose not to depart Mali should prepare contingency plans for any emergency situations that may arise, including a need to shelter in place for an extended period.”
In a previous alert on 24 October, the U.S. State Department warned Americans not to travel to Mali due to “crime, terrorism, kidnapping,” and other risks. The department authorized nonemergency personnel and family members of U.S. government employees to leave Mali because of the safety risks, and employees still in Mali are not allowed to travel outside of Bamako due to safety concerns.
Between four major terrorist groups and a wave of lone actor attacks, terrorism continues to persist and spread, reversing nearly a decade of improvements documented by the Institute for Economics and Peace’s Global Terrorism Index. https://t.co/hz9nOguAzs
— Security Management (@SecMgmtMag) March 5, 2025
Mali is the sixth least developed nation in the world, with almost half of its population living below the national poverty line. The fuel blockade has hiked commodity prices, worsening living conditions still further, the AP reported.
Beyond gasoline pumps, store shelves are growing bare because commercial truck drivers are scared to travel, especially across borders. In addition, power outages are increasing because the country doesn’t have enough fuel to power the electric grid. In Mopti, Mali’s third-largest city, residents have been without electricity for weeks.
JNIM, which has a fighting force across the Sahel region of around 6,000, has declared that the fuel siege will continue until the Malian junta falls or agrees to apply “Islamic sharia law” nationwide, The Washington Post reported. Local communities across the Sahel have already acquiesced to JNIM’s demands, adhering to strict interpretations of Islamic law, requiring women to wear burkas in public, and paying zakat, or tax, in exchange for peace.
Some JNIM leaders have signaled willingness to enter official negotiations with the government, but Mali’s military leaders have so far rejected the possibility of talks.
Terrorism in the Sahel continues to climb, threatening a whole bloc of countries in western and central Africa. In the last two decades, the region has become the epicenter of terrorism, accounting for 51 percent of all terrorism deaths in 2024 and 19 percent of all attacks, according to the Institute of Economics and Peace’s Global Terrorism Index 2025.
The region’s shifting power dynamics in the last two decades led to a security vacuum, which has been exploited by violent extremists, according to the Council on Foreign Relations.
“Experts attribute the expansion of violent extremism in the Sahel to persistently weak governance, characterized by corruption, democratic backsliding, legitimacy deficits, and human rights violations,” according to the council’s Global Conflict Tracker entry specifically about the Sahel. “Many countries in the region share similar internal dynamics of inequality—state power tends to be concentrated in southern, urban regions while rural, northern areas remain underdeveloped and ripe for exploitation by extremist groups. Thus, Sahel countries are consistently ranked high on the Fragile State Index, particularly Chad, Mali, and Nigeria.”
