Abidjan, Ivory Coast – Authorities in Ivory Coast have strengthened border security following an unusual influx of refugees fleeing southern Mali, officials said on Thursday.

The National Security Council (NSC) attributed the surge to attacks on civilians by armed terrorist groups, particularly the al-Qaeda-linked Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), which has waged a nearly decade-long insurgency in Mali and expanded operations across the Sahel region.

“The National Security Council has instructed its Executive Secretary to take all necessary steps to register these asylum seekers,” the NSC said in a statement. “Furthermore, the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces has been instructed to take appropriate measures to strengthen security at our country’s northern borders.”

Background on JNIM and the Sahel Crisis

Formed in 2017, JNIM is a merger of several militant groups, including al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, Ansar Dine, the Macina Liberation Front, and al-Mourabitoun. Conflict monitors report it as the most active armed group in West Africa, with operations now extending into Burkina Faso, Niger, Ghana, Benin, Togo, and most recently Nigeria, where militants killed a soldier and seized ammunition and cash.

JNIM has also targeted civilian and economic infrastructure in Mali. In September, the group blocked major fuel supply routes to Bamako, causing a fuel and economic crisis in the capital and prompting hundreds of residents to flee across the border into Ivory Coast.

On Wednesday, militants attacked Loulouni, roughly 50 km from the Ivory Coast border, forcing hundreds more civilians to flee.

Regional Impact

Ivory Coast already hosts about 90,000 refugees from Burkina Faso, which is also struggling with armed uprisings. The latest wave of arrivals from Mali has prompted officials to tighten border controls and coordinate asylum registration for incoming refugees.

“The influx appears to be due to attacks against civilians by armed terrorist groups in several areas of southern Mali,” the NSC said.

The situation underscores the growing security and humanitarian challenges in the Sahel, where jihadist violence and economic blockades are driving displacement across national borders.