Armed men attacked several industrial sites in western Mali early Sunday, striking factories near Bafoulabe in the Kayes region, witnesses and executives said.
Ibrahima Diawara, chief executive of IBI Group, said his factory came under fire and faced a high risk of serious damage.
“My factory in Bafoulabe is currently under attack by armed men,” Diawara told Anadolu in a brief phone interview.
He said other nearby facilities were also targeted, including a Diamond Cement plant and another factory owned by Indian investors.
As afternoon approached, Malian authorities had issued no official response, leaving residents and businesses anxiously awaiting reassurance.
A local resident said about 160 heavily armed attackers on roughly 80 motorcycles carried out the coordinated assault.
The attackers split near Selinkegny, torching machinery and a bus as they moved between industrial compounds, the resident said.
There were no immediate reports of deaths or injuries, though three people were kidnapped at the Diamond Cement factory.
Residents had warned of looming danger earlier this month, prompting evacuations and the flight of managers to the regional capital.
The attack echoes a major July assault that burned three IBI Group factories, deepening fears of sustained economic sabotage.
Bafoulabe lies about 330 kilometres northwest of Bamako, near a vital highway linking the capital to the Kayes region.
That corridor has suffered repeated attacks since September, blamed on JNIM, including the destruction of more than 130 fuel tankers.
The violence has fuelled shortages, disrupted trade, and cast a long shadow over western Mali’s fragile industrial heartbeat.
