🔗 Share this article The West African nation Shuts Down Schools and Universities as Islamist Militant Blockade Worsens Petrol Shortage Prolonged queues have been appearing around gas stations in the last few days The landlocked West African country has closed schools and higher learning institutions throughout the country due to a critical energy crisis caused by a restriction on energy resources imposed by jihadist fighters. Minister of Education announced on public media that all education institutions would be inactive until the ninth of November, clarifying that the movement of employees and learners had been disrupted by the restrictions. He stated that the authorities were “making every effort” to resolve the emergency so that educational activities could continue on the tenth of November. For a number of weeks, the nation has been facing a fuel shortage, especially in the administrative center, after militants from an al-Qaeda affiliate initiated a blockade by targeting fuel trucks on primary roads. Mali is without coastal access, so all fuel supplies are transported by land routes from neighboring states such as Senegal and Côte d'Ivoire. Lengthy waits have been snaking around fuel outlets in Bamako in the last several days, and the city's normally bustling streets have now allegedly become deserted. The junta-led administration had previously assured citizens that it was only a passing concern, but the situation has persisted. In the past few days, the US Embassy in the capital declared that secondary diplomatic employees and their dependents would evacuate the country amid the worsening energy crisis and growing safety issues. It explained that the petroleum supply issues had impacted the energy availability and had the “potential to disrupt” the overall security situation in unexpected forms. Mali is presently governed by a armed forces administration led by the military leader, who took control in a coup in two years ago. The junta had public backing when it came to authority, committing to tackle the long-running security crisis caused by a autonomy movement in the north by the Tuareg population, which was then co-opted by Islamist militants. The UN peacekeeping mission and France's military had been stationed in 2013 to address the increasing militant activity. The international troops have withdrawn since the junta took over, and the ruling council has employed Russian mercenaries to tackle the instability. Nonetheless, the jihadist insurgency has persisted and large parts of the north and east of the nation remain beyond state authority.