PRETORIA, April 29. /TASS/. A curfew has been imposed in the Kayes region of western Mali, the region’s governor Brigadier General Moussa Soumare said.
"A complete ban on vehicle and pedestrian movement is in effect from 9:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. (midnight to 9:00 a.m. Moscow time (9:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. GMT)," the authorities said in a statement. "This measure applies to all areas of Kayes until further notice." An exception has been made for military vehicles and ambulances.
Night patrols will be operating during dark hours and during curfew periods. Soumare emphasized that authorities are making every effort to stabilize the situation and called on the population to exercise increased vigilance.
Kayes is a border region, crossed by important transport routes linking Mali with Senegal and Guinea. Radical groups operate in the region, the largest of which is Jama'a Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM, which identifies itself as part of the terrorist organization Al-Qaeda and is banned in Russia).
A curfew has also been imposed in several other parts of Mali, including the capital Bamako.
On April 25, government troops, with support from Mali’s international allies, repelled numerous attacks by units of radical groups and brought the situation back under control by midday. Mali's Defense Minister Sadio Camara was killed in an attack on his residence.