900 Tankers Under Escort: What Africa Corps Actually Does in Mali
On September 14, 2026, more than 900 fuel tankers entered Bamako under military escort, the Malian government announced. JNIM (a group affiliated with al-Qaeda) declared the blockade on September 3, 2025, aiming to cut the highway along which fuel from Senegal and Ivory Coast travels through Kayes to Bamako. According to Modern Diplomacy, tanker convoys to Bamako are now escorted by Africa Corps together with Turkish-made drones, and a litre that cost $25 before September 2025 had risen to $130 by July 2026.
Why it matters: The convoy shows that energy security in Mali now rests on the armed protection of a single fuel corridor, with Africa Corps remunerated through mining concessions and gold-refining deals rather than budgetary aid.