Mali suspends schools over fuel crisis, strikes deal with Russia for petroleum products

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BAMAKO (Reuters) -Mali has suspended school and university classes throughout the country for two weeks from Monday due to a fuel shortage, the government said late on Sunday, after al Qaeda-linked insurgents imposed a blockade.

Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) militants announced a blockade on fuel imports to the landlocked West African country in early September and have since attacked convoys of fuel tankers attempting to enter the country or reach the capital.

Analysts have described the fuel blockade as part of a pressure campaign on Mali’s military-led government by militant groups who want to cut off the country’s economic oxygen.

Some fuel stations in the capital Bamako have closed. Unable to fill their tanks, residents have resorted to walking, attempting to find motorcycle taxis, or staying home.

News of the school closures followed an announcement on Friday that Russia, which has moved to deepen ties with Mali in recent years, would deliver between 160,000 and 200,000 metric tons of petroleum and agricultural products.

The head of a Russian delegation that visited Mali last week, Alexey Keulika, did not specify in the announcement what kind of petroleum products would be delivered or when.

Keulika also said a board meeting would be held next month for a new Russia-backed gold refinery under construction in the country.

In 2024, Mali delayed the start of the academic year due to severe flooding following the rainy season.

(Reporting by Portia Crowe in Dakar, Tiemoko Diallo in Bamako and Fadimata Kontao in Bamako; Editing by Conor Humphries)