Shadowy Al-Qaeda Terrorists Heap Pressure on Mali’s Junta

Al-Qaeda jihadists are tightening the screws on Mali’s military junta, extending their attacks to the south of the country and hitting a key garrison town on the outskirts of the capital. Raids last week displayed coordination and operational complexity at a range that is unprecedented in the country’s decade-long jihadist campaign, say analysts. Last Thursday, six attacks unfolded simultaneously at 5 am, striking the country’s troubled centre as well as the southern regions of Sikasso, Koulikoro and Kayes, which until now had never been targeted. The following day, two explosive-laden vehicles smashed into the gates of an army building in…