Who Is Malick Diaw, The 25-Year-Old That Overthrew Mali President And His Govt?

A 25-year-old Colonel, Malick Diaw, led the coup that overthrew Mali President Keita and his Government.

On 18 August 2020, elements of the Malian Armed Forces began a mutiny. Soldiers on pick-up trucks stormed the Soundiata military base in the town of Kati, where gunfire was exchanged before weapons were distributed from the armory and senior officers arrested.

Tanks and armoured vehicles were seen on the town’s streets, as well as military trucks heading for the capital, Bamako.

President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita today resigned to avoid bloodshed after he was detained in a military coup, whose leaders pledged new elections to resolve a spiralling political crisis in the fragile West African nation.

Keita’s government had been characterised by months of protests over economic stagnation, corruption and a brutal Islamist insurgency that has claimed thousands of lives.

The coup in Mali was led by two colonels: Sadio Camara and Malick Diaw.

According to a Malian journalist, Seydou Oumar Traoré, Camara was the ex-director of the military Prytaneum of Kati who has just returned from training in Russia.

Malick Diaw is the Chief of Staff of the 3rd Military Region of Kati.

Also mentioned was Lieutenant-Colonel Mama Seku Lelenta.