🔗 Share this article Mali Shuts Down Educational Institutions and Universities as Islamist Militant Restrictions Exacerbates Fuel Crisis Lengthy lines have been forming around fuel pumps in the past few weeks The landlocked West African country has closed schools and colleges countrywide due to a severe fuel scarcity caused by a restriction on petroleum supplies imposed by Islamist insurgents. Minister of Education announced on national broadcast that all education institutions would be inactive until 9 November, clarifying that the transportation of employees and pupils had been affected by the restrictions. He stated that the authorities were “doing everything possible” to end the crisis so that classes could continue on the tenth of November. For weeks, Mali has been facing a petrol crisis, notably in the capital Bamako, after militants from an al-Qaeda affiliate imposed a embargo by striking transport vehicles on major highways. The country is landlocked, so all fuel supplies are brought in by land routes from adjacent nations such as Senegal and Ivory Coast. Lengthy waits have been snaking around fuel outlets in the capital in the last several days, and the city's normally bustling streets have now allegedly grown silent. The ruling military council had previously reassured residents that it was only a passing concern, but the crisis has endured. Last week, the US Embassy in the capital stated that non-critical embassy personnel and their relatives would evacuate the country amid the worsening petrol scarcity and increasing safety issues. It said that the energy interruptions had impacted the power distribution and had the “potential to disrupt” the general safety conditions in unpredictable ways. Mali is currently ruled by a military junta led by the military leader, who assumed authority in a coup in recently. The ruling council had widespread approval when it took power, promising to deal with the protracted safety emergency triggered by a independence uprising in the northern territories by Tuareg communities, which was then co-opted by extremist groups. The UN peacekeeping mission and European soldiers had been stationed in a decade ago to combat the escalating insurgency. The international troops have withdrawn since the junta took over, and the ruling council has employed Russian mercenaries to combat the instability. However, the jihadist insurgency has endured and significant areas of the northern and eastern zones of the state remain beyond state authority.