In July 2022, 49 Ivorian soldiers were arrested in Bamako, Mali, upon arrival at the airport, accused by Mali’s military junta of being mercenaries intent on destabilizing the country. However, reports by RFI revealed that these soldiers were part of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) and had been deployed at the request of the German contingent as a National Support Element (NSE). The soldiers were convicted in December 2022 by a Malian military court for “plotting against the government” and “undermining the external security of the state” but were pardoned and released in January 2023, ending a six-month diplomatic standoff. Below is a detailed account of the incident, its implications, and the broader context.
Background of the Incident
On July 10, 2022, 49 Ivorian soldiers landed in Bamako to serve as the eighth rotation of an NSE supporting MINUSMA operations, under an agreement signed between Côte d’Ivoire and the United Nations in July 2019. The soldiers were contracted through Sahel Aviation Service to provide security and logistics at a site at Bamako airport, which housed the German contingent’s NSEs. Côte d’Ivoire maintained that their deployment was legitimate, aligned with a July 12, 2022, communiqué from its National Security Council, and consistent with seven prior rotations since 2019.
However, Malian authorities claimed the soldiers arrived without proper authorization, carrying weapons and ammunition, and labeled them as mercenaries. This led to their arrest and sparked a diplomatic crisis between Mali and Côte d’Ivoire, two West African neighbors and members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). The situation was further complicated by a UN spokesperson’s initial confirmation on July 11 that the soldiers were part of MINUSMA, followed by a retraction three days later, which prompted Mali to expel MINUSMA’s spokesman, Olivier Salgado, for spreading “unacceptable information.”
Role of the German Contingent and UN Oversight
Internal UN documents obtained by RFI confirmed that the Ivorian soldiers were deployed at the request of the German contingent within MINUSMA, specifically to support logistics and security at Bamako airport. The flights carrying the soldiers were declared to Malian authorities as transporting German contingent troops, a detail that contributed to the confusion. The German contingent had reported 471 soldiers under NSE status in June 2022, a figure significantly exceeding the UN’s standard limit of 50 NSE personnel per contingent, except in exceptional circumstances. This unusually high number, without specified nationalities, raised questions about oversight and communication within MINUSMA.
The UN acknowledged “dysfunctions” in the deployment process, with MINUSMA noting that the Ivorians were stationed at Bamako’s Senou airport to support the German NSE, rather than Timbuktu, where Côte d’Ivoire’s main MINUSMA contingent was based. The UN’s failure to clarify the soldiers’ status and the German authorities’ refusal to comment—both the embassy in Bamako and the Ministry of Defence in Berlin—further muddled the situation, fueling Mali’s accusations of subversive intent.
Diplomatic Fallout and Resolution
The arrests strained Mali’s relations with Côte d’Ivoire and ECOWAS, already tense due to Mali’s military coups in 2020 and 2021 and its growing ties with Russian mercenaries from the Wagner Group. Mali’s junta demanded that Côte d’Ivoire acknowledge responsibility and express regret, even suggesting the soldiers’ release in exchange for the extradition of Malian opposition figures living in Côte d’Ivoire—a proposal Abidjan rejected as “blackmail.” ECOWAS set a January 1, 2023, deadline for the soldiers’ release, threatening additional sanctions on Mali, which were lifted in July 2022 after earlier disputes.
In September 2022, three female soldiers among the 49 were released, but they were later sentenced to death in absentia by a Malian court in December 2022, alongside the 20-year prison sentences for the remaining 46. Following intense negotiations, mediated by Togolese President Faure Gnassingbé, Mali’s junta leader, Colonel Assimi Goïta, pardoned all 49 soldiers on January 6, 2023. The soldiers returned to Abidjan on January 7, and Côte d’Ivoire expressed a desire for “normal relations” with Mali, signaling an end to the dispute.
Critical Analysis
The incident highlights several systemic issues:
- Miscommunication and Oversight: The UN’s initial confirmation and subsequent retraction, combined with the German contingent’s lack of transparency about the 471 NSE personnel, suggest significant lapses in coordination within MINUSMA. The failure to clearly communicate the Ivorians’ role to Malian authorities exacerbated the crisis, pointing to weaknesses in UN peacekeeping protocols.
- Mali’s Political Context: Mali’s junta, facing international isolation after coups and its alignment with Russia, used the arrests to assert sovereignty and deflect criticism. The expulsion of MINUSMA’s spokesman and suspension of UN troop rotations reflect a broader pattern of hostility toward international forces, culminating in Mali’s demand for MINUSMA’s withdrawal by December 2023.
- ECOWAS and Regional Tensions: The crisis strained Mali’s ties with ECOWAS, already frayed by sanctions and the junta’s delayed transition to civilian rule. Côte d’Ivoire’s decision to withdraw its 857 MINUSMA personnel by August 2023, announced in November 2022, was partly a response to the prolonged detention, highlighting the fragility of regional unity.
- Human Rights Concerns: The harsh charges and death sentences in absentia raise questions about Mali’s judicial processes under military rule. The UN’s reluctance to fully clarify the soldiers’ status, citing “internal operational matters,” may have prolonged their detention, leaving them vulnerable to political maneuvering.
Broader Implications
The affair underscores the challenges of peacekeeping in politically volatile contexts. Mali’s accusations of mercenary activity reflect heightened paranoia amid its pivot to Russian support and deteriorating relations with Western partners, including France, which withdrew its forces in August 2022, and Germany, which began phasing out its MINUSMA contingent by May 2024. The incident also prompted other nations, like the UK, to withdraw from MINUSMA, citing Mali’s ties with Wagner.
Côte d’Ivoire’s acknowledgment of “shortcomings and misunderstandings” suggests procedural errors in deployment notifications, but the soldiers’ release and subsequent decoration as knights of the National Order of the Republic on August 13, 2024, reflect national pride in their service. The crisis, while resolved, exposed the complexities of multinational peacekeeping missions and the need for clearer protocols to prevent such misunderstandings.
