🔗 Share this article The West African nation Closes Educational Institutions and Universities as Jihadist Blockade Exacerbates Fuel Shortage Prolonged lines have been appearing around gas stations in the last few days The landlocked West African country has closed educational facilities and colleges across the nation due to a severe energy crisis triggered by a embargo on energy resources imposed by jihadist fighters. Top education official declared on state television that all education institutions would be inactive until the ninth of November, explaining that the travel of staff and students had been affected by the restrictions. He emphasized that the administration were “making every effort” to end the crisis so that academic sessions could continue on November 10th. For weeks, the nation has been facing a fuel shortage, especially in the capital Bamako, after militants from an jihadist network initiated a blockade by attacking tankers on key routes. Mali is surrounded by land, so all fuel supplies are brought in by truck from adjacent nations such as its western neighbor and the neighboring nation. Long queues have been forming around gas pumps in Bamako in recent weeks, and the city's usually crowded streets have now allegedly fallen quiet. The junta-led administration had previously assured the public that it was only a short-term problem, but the crisis has endured. Last week, the US Embassy in Bamako announced that non-critical embassy personnel and their families would depart the country amid the deteriorating energy crisis and escalating safety issues. It explained that the fuel disruptions had affected the power distribution and had the “capacity to affect” the broader protection environment in unpredictable ways. Mali is presently governed by a armed forces administration led by General Goïta, who seized power in a coup in 2021. The military government had popular support when it assumed control, vowing to address the ongoing instability triggered by a autonomy movement in the northern region by the Tuareg population, which was then taken over by jihadist fighters. The international UN troops and European soldiers had been sent in previously to address the growing rebellion. The international troops have departed since the new administration came in, and the ruling council has contracted Russian mercenaries to combat the violence. Nevertheless, the militant uprising has continued and large parts of the northern and eastern territories of the nation remain not under administrative command.