Mali’s interim President Goita attacked with knife in Bamako mosque: Reports

Mali's interim President Assimi Goita survived a knife attack on Tuesday, according to the government.

The incident occurred at the great mosque, in the capital Bamako, during prayers for the Islamic festival of Eid al-Adha, meaning "Festival of the Sacrifice."

Goita had since been taken from the scene, AFP reported, while an official at the presidency said he was unharmed.

Religious Affairs Minister Mamadou Kone told the news agency that a man had "tried to kill the president with a knife" but was apprehended.

"The attacker was immediately subdued by security," the presidency's official Twitter account posted. "Investigations are ongoing."

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Bamako | 20 juillet 2021 | #Communiqué

Tentative d'agression à l'arme blanche contre le Président de la Transition, le Colonel Assimi GOITA à la grande mosquée de Bamako. L'agresseur à été aussitôt maîtrisé par la sécurité rapprochée.
Les investigations sont en cours.

— Presidence Mali (@PresidenceMali) July 20, 2021 >

Seizing power

The attack follows months of political turmoil in Mali, which is also battling an Islamist insurgency that has claimed thousands of lives and displaced hundreds of thousands of people.

In June, Colonel Goita was sworn in as the transitional president after leading an internationally condemned coup. It was the second time he had led such a coup, after a similar putsch in August 2020. The initial coup, orchestrated by Goita and other army officers, ousted elected president Ibrahim Boubacar Keita after weeks of mass protests over corruption and the long-running conflict.