BAMAKO — Malian Gen. Sadio Camara was killed in an attack on his residence during coordinated assaults by jihadi and rebel forces on Bamako and other cities on Saturday. The government confirmed his death in a post on the defense ministry's Facebook page and expressed condolences to his family.

State-run television broadcast the announcement of Camara's death by spokesman Gen. Issa Ousmane Coulibaly. Camara's residence was targeted by a suicide car bomber and other attackers, and he exchanged fire with the assailants and neutralized some of them before being wounded during intense clashes. He was transported to a hospital and died from his injuries.

The attackers seized towns and military bases across Mali. The government said the attacks appeared to be over as of Sunday and that at least 16 people were wounded. Coulibaly said civilian and military personnel were among the wounded and that several militants were killed, but he did not provide a death toll. A three-day overnight curfew from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. was announced for the Bamako district.

Saturday's attacks marked the first time the separatists joined forces with the al-Qaida-linked group JNIM, which said it participated in the attack on Kidal and targeted a town outside Bamako and three other cities. The Azawad Liberation Front said Russian Africa Corps troops and the Malian military withdrew from Kidal following the Saturday attack after reaching an agreement for a peaceful exit. An earlier government statement said security forces were tracking down terrorist armed groups in Kidal, which served as a stronghold of the northern rebellion before being taken by Malian government forces and Russian mercenaries in 2023.

Azawad Liberation Front spokesperson Mohamed El Maouloud Ramadan said, "Kidal is declared free." "This operation is being carried out in partnership with the JNIM, which is also committed to defending the people against the military regime in Bamako," he said. The front also said its "Actions have contributed to the suffering of the civilian population."

Separatist groups have been fighting for years to create an independent state in northern Mali, while al-Qaida-aligned and Islamic State-aligned militants have been fighting the Malian government for over a decade. Government forces have been accused of killing civilians suspected of collaborating with militants. In 2024, an al-Qaida-linked group claimed an attack on Bamako's airport and a military training camp in the capital, killing scores of people.

After military coups in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, their juntas turned from Western allies to Russia for help in combating Islamic militants. "The attacks are a major blow to Russia as the mercenaries had no intelligence about the attacks and were unable to protect major cities," Ulf Laessing said. He said the separatists and JNIM are unlikely to take control of Bamako in the near term due to opposition from the local population. The Economic Community of West African States called on West African states, security forces, regional mechanisms and populations to unite and mobilize in a coordinated effort to combat the attacks.