The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) issued this call following strikes perpetrated this weekend on military and civilian targets by armed radical groups in the capital and other areas, which left at least 16 people injured.

The ECOWAS, comprised of 15 countries, called for a united effort to eradicate these radical groups, addressing not only governments but also security forces, regional mechanisms, and the people of West Africa.

The considered Regional Political and Economic Union of Africa condemned, in the document, a series of armed assaults in Malian towns, calling them “a serious threat to regional peace and stability.”

While instability still reigns in the Sahelian country, security sources indicated that the cities of Bamako, Kati, Mopti, and Gao are currently under the control of government troops.

Following clashes in Mali between the government forces and the extremist Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims and northern separatist groups, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres called for international solutions to curb violent extremism in the Sahel.

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