{"id":6528,"date":"2026-06-04T15:38:42","date_gmt":"2026-06-04T15:38:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/home\/mali-offers-3-5m-for-al-qaeda-leader"},"modified":"2026-06-05T19:17:40","modified_gmt":"2026-06-05T19:17:40","slug":"mali-offers-3-5m-for-al-qaeda-leader","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/policy\/mali-offers-3-5m-for-al-qaeda-leader","title":{"rendered":"Mali Offers $3.5M for Al-Qaeda Leader"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press. <\/strong> <\/span>The military authorities in Mali have allocated a substantial financial reward of $3.5 million for information leading to the capture or elimination of Iyad Ag Ghaly, the leader of the group “Support for Islam and Muslims,” which is linked to al-Qaeda.<\/p>\n

The ruling military council announced the allocation of two billion West African francs (approximately $3.5 million) for information that helps in locating Ag Ghaly, who is considered the top security target in the region and the leader of the largest militant group opposing military regimes in the Sahel countries.<\/p>\n

Authorities also offered an additional reward of $2.5 million for information leading to the capture of his deputy Amadou Koufa, along with other rewards related to information about leaders of Tuareg rebels.<\/p>\n

Iyad Ag Ghaly is one of the most prominent armed figures in the African Sahel region. He was a former Malian diplomat and one of the leaders of the Tuareg rebellion before turning to lead jihadist groups in northern Mali.<\/p>\n

Ag Ghaly tops the wanted lists in the region and is listed on U.S. terrorism lists, as well as being wanted under an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court.<\/p>\n

Since the establishment of the group “Support for Islam and Muslims” in 2017, dozens of attacks against government and foreign forces in the Sahel region have been attributed to the organization.<\/p>\n

A statement broadcast by the official Malian television indicated that the authorities “are making every possible effort to capture these individuals for their alleged involvement in planning, organizing, and executing terrorist acts that threaten the safety of citizens and their property within national territory.”<\/p>\n

Earlier this week, the government announced a ban on the sale and use of motorcycles with engines larger than 125 cubic centimeters outside major cities, as they have become a primary means used by armed groups to carry out swift attacks and navigate the vast areas of the Sahel region.<\/p>\n

The authorities also decided to establish 35 “military significance zones” in forests and remote areas in the central, southern, and western parts of the country, prohibiting civilians from entering them. The Malian General Staff clarified that these areas are potential havens for armed groups, emphasizing that they will be treated as open military targets for security operations.<\/p>\n

Mali has been experiencing armed rebellions and violence led by groups linked to al-Qaeda and ISIS, along with separatist movements and criminal gangs for over a decade.<\/p>\n

Since the military took power in 2020, the military authorities have made combating militant groups a top priority, but attacks continue despite intensive military campaigns.<\/p>\n

The country witnessed one of the most intense escalations in recent years last April when the group “Support for Islam and Muslims,” in collaboration with the separatist “Azawad Liberation Front,” launched a wide-ranging attack that included a siege of the capital Bamako and the capture of the strategic city of Kidal in the north.<\/p>\n

During those attacks, Defense Minister Sadio Kamara was killed in an operation targeting his residence in the military city of Kati, northwest of the capital, and the head of military intelligence was also killed.<\/p>\n

Find more news and analyses on Africa<\/span> on the Africa Press<\/span> website<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press. The military authorities in Mali have allocated a substantial financial reward of $3.5 million for information leading to the capture or elimination of Iyad Ag Ghaly, the leader of the group “Support for Islam and Muslims,” which is linked to al-Qaeda. The ruling military council announced the allocation of two billion West African francs […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":6527,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[40],"tags":[120],"class_list":{"0":"post-6528","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-policy","8":"tag-africa"},"yoast_head":"\nMali Offers $3.5M for Al-Qaeda Leader - Africa Press English<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The military authorities in Mali have allocated a substantial financial reward of $3.5 million for\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/policy\/mali-offers-3-5m-for-al-qaeda-leader\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Mali Offers $3.5M for Al-Qaeda Leader\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The military authorities in Mali have allocated a substantial financial reward of $3.5 million for\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/policy\/mali-offers-3-5m-for-al-qaeda-leader\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Africa Press English\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-04T15:38:42+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-06-05T19:17:40+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/africa-home\/sites\/69\/2026\/06\/sm_1780686712.631528.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"900\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/policy\/mali-offers-3-5m-for-al-qaeda-leader#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/policy\/mali-offers-3-5m-for-al-qaeda-leader\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Mali Offers $3.5M for Al-Qaeda Leader\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-04T15:38:42+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-06-05T19:17:40+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/policy\/mali-offers-3-5m-for-al-qaeda-leader\"},\"wordCount\":528,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/policy\/mali-offers-3-5m-for-al-qaeda-leader#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/africa-home\/sites\/69\/2026\/06\/sm_1780686712.631528.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Africa\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Policy\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/policy\/mali-offers-3-5m-for-al-qaeda-leader#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/policy\/mali-offers-3-5m-for-al-qaeda-leader\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/policy\/mali-offers-3-5m-for-al-qaeda-leader\",\"name\":\"Mali Offers $3.5M for Al-Qaeda Leader - 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