Latest news with #NationalStateSecurityAgency
05-08-2025
- Politics
Morrocan truck drivers kidnapped by Islamic State group released in Mali
BAMAKO, Mali -- Four Moroccan truck drivers, who were kidnapped in January in West Africa by the Islamic State group and held captive for months, were released late Sunday, Malian authorities said. The truckers were traveling 3,000 miles to transport electrical equipment from Casablanca to Niamey, the capital of Niger, before they were reported missing on January 18, 2025, in northeastern Burkina Faso, near the border with Niger. The Malian government said in a statement read on public television late Monday the truck drivers were released 'safe and sound' Sunday evening. It added the four were held by the Islamic State in the Sahel Province, a subgroup of the Islamic state group. Malian public television showed video of the drivers wearing traditional Malian clothes in the company of junta leader Gen. Assimi Goïta. The Malian government said their release was made possible thanks to the coordinated efforts between Mali's National State Security Agency and Morocco's foreign intelligence service. Mali, along with neighboring Burkina Faso and Niger, has for more than a decade battled an insurgency by armed groups, including some allied with al-Qaida and the Islamic State group. Following military coups, the three countries expelled French forces and turned to Russia's mercenary units for assistance, but the security situation has been deteriorating. In May, extremist fighters abducted two Chinese nationals during an attack on an artisanal gold mining site in Mali. In February, Moroccan authorities said they arrested a dozen people who were planning attacks on behalf of the Islamic State in the Sahel Province subgroup. Morocco has worked to present itself as a regional leader and is forging deeper ties with countries in the Sahel. Foreign ministers of landlocked Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso said they were backing a Moroccan initiative granting them access to the Atlantic ocean using its ports. Last year, Rabat mediated the release of four French intelligence agents held in Burkina Faso. ——
Morocco World
05-08-2025
- Politics
- Morocco World
Mali Announces Release of Kidnapped Moroccan Truckers
Rabat – The Malian government has announced the release of four Moroccan truck drivers who were kidnapped earlier this year in northeastern Burkina Faso near the border with Niger. Bamako announced their release on Monday, noting that the truckers, who were kidnapped in January, were freed last Sunday. All four Moroccan truckers are 'safe and sound,' the Malian government said, asserting that they were held by the terrorist Islamic State in the Sahel Province. The terrorist group is affiliated with ISIS. The statement emphasized that the release took place in coordination with Mali's National State Security Agency and Morocco's General Directorate for Studies and Documentation. The two departments jointly conducted an investigation that led to the drivers' release. Moroccan truckers have been increasingly affected by the deteriorating security situation in the Sahel. In January, a violent attack in Niooro du Sahel, a town in Mali, affected two Moroccan trucks as terrorists targeted several points in the city. The truckers were safe, but a few trucks were slightly damaged during the attack. In 2021, two Moroccan drivers died due to another violent attack. Back then, Mali condemned the attack, describing it as 'barbaric.' 'In this painful circumstance, the minister expressed, on behalf of the president of the transition and the government, all the compassion and solidarity with the government and the brotherly people of Morocco,' said the Malian Foreign Affairs Ministry.
Winnipeg Free Press
05-08-2025
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
Morrocan truck drivers kidnapped by Islamic State group released in Mali
BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — Four Moroccan truck drivers, who were kidnapped in January in West Africa by the Islamic State group and held captive for months, were released late Sunday, Malian authorities said. The truckers were traveling 3,000 miles to transport electrical equipment from Casablanca to Niamey, the capital of Niger, before they were reported missing on January 18, 2025, in northeastern Burkina Faso, near the border with Niger. The Malian government said in a statement read on public television late Monday the truck drivers were released 'safe and sound' Sunday evening. It added the four were held by the Islamic State in the Sahel Province, a subgroup of the Islamic state group. Malian public television showed video of the drivers wearing traditional Malian clothes in the company of junta leader Gen. Assimi Goïta. The Malian government said their release was made possible thanks to the coordinated efforts between Mali's National State Security Agency and Morocco's foreign intelligence service. Mali, along with neighboring Burkina Faso and Niger, has for more than a decade battled an insurgency by armed groups, including some allied with al-Qaida and the Islamic State group. Following military coups, the three countries expelled French forces and turned to Russia's mercenary units for assistance, but the security situation has been deteriorating. In May, extremist fighters abducted two Chinese nationals during an attack on an artisanal gold mining site in Mali. In February, Moroccan authorities said they arrested a dozen people who were planning attacks on behalf of the Islamic State in the Sahel Province subgroup. Morocco has worked to present itself as a regional leader and is forging deeper ties with countries in the Sahel. Foreign ministers of landlocked Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso said they were backing a Moroccan initiative granting them access to the Atlantic ocean using its ports. Last year, Rabat mediated the release of four French intelligence agents held in Burkina Faso. —— Akram Oubachir reported from Rabat, Morocco.
