🔗 Share this article Mali Shuts Down Educational Institutions and Universities as Islamist Militant Restrictions Worsens Fuel Emergency Lengthy lines have been forming around petrol stations in the last few days The landlocked West African country has temporarily halted schools and higher learning institutions across the nation due to a acute fuel scarcity caused by a blockade on fuel imports enforced by jihadist fighters. The Education Minister announced on national broadcast that all education institutions would remain closed until 9 November, noting that the transportation of personnel and pupils had been impacted by the restrictions. He stated that the administration were “working tirelessly” to end the crisis so that classes could resume on November 10th. For several weeks, Mali has been facing a energy deficit, particularly in the main city, after armed groups from an jihadist network enforced a restriction by striking tankers on key routes. Mali is landlocked, so all energy resources are transported by land routes from bordering countries such as its western neighbor and Côte d'Ivoire. Long queues have been snaking around gas pumps in Bamako in the past few weeks, and the city's normally bustling streets have now reportedly become deserted. The ruling military council had in recent days reassured citizens that it was only a temporary issue, but the crisis has endured. In the past few days, the US Embassy in the capital announced that non-essential diplomatic staff and their dependents would leave the country amid the worsening energy crisis and escalating safety issues. It said that the fuel disruptions had affected the energy availability and had the “capacity to affect” the broader protection environment in unpredictable ways. The West African nation is now led by a military junta under the leadership of the military leader, who assumed authority in a military overthrow in two years ago. The ruling council had popular support when it took power, promising to deal with the protracted safety emergency prompted by a autonomy movement in the northern region by Tuareg communities, which was then hijacked by Islamist militants. The UN peacekeeping mission and French forces had been sent in a decade ago to address the growing rebellion. Both have left since the military assumed power, and the current administration has employed private military contractors to tackle the violence. However, the militant uprising has endured and significant areas of the north and east of the nation remain outside government control.