A court in Mali has rejected a request for the release of 11 prominent critics of the ruling junta, who were arrested in June on accusations of “plotting against the legal authorities.”
Among those detained are former ministers and political figures who had previously called for a return to civilian rule in a March declaration, citing concerns over a “legal and institutional vacuum” as the junta missed its deadline to hand over power.
The detainees, who were arrested while meeting privately in Bamako, are being held under a strict ban imposed by the junta on political gatherings—a ban lifted only in July. Their lawyers now plan to appeal the court’s decision.
Since coming to power through coups in 2020 and 2021, Mali’s junta has tightened its grip on dissent and postponed the presidential election initially promised for early 2024, extending its hold on a country grappling with political instability, economic strain, and escalating violence.
