Katiba Macina formed in 2015 as an affiliate of jihadist group Ansar Dine in central Mali's Mopti Region. The group first created bases in the Wagadou forest on the Malian-Mauritanian border, attacking locales in Ténenkou Cercle and Ségou Region.[1]
Between 4am and 6:15 am, the attackers arrived from the direction of the Wagadou forest on vehicles fitted with black flags and entered Nampala from the eastern side. The jihadists then turned south-east, heading towards the Malian military garrison in the town.[2][3] Around a hundred Malian soldiers were present at the camp during the attack.[4] Despite this, the jihadists were able to surprise the soldiers and entered the camp.[5][6]
The Malian soldiers did not put up much resistance, and quickly fled the surprise attack.[3] The jihadists quickly took control of the city, and installed their flags on administrative buildings in the few hours before they were evicted.[7] The Malian army and French air force quickly deployed reinforcements to the area, and the jihadists fled the town by 11am.[6] A fighter from AQIM told the Mauritanian news agency Alakhbar that they were withdrawing from the city, and taking three Malian prisoners with them.[8] The jihadists retreated back to the Wagadou forest.[9] Malian forces regained control of Nampala that evening.[10]
The group responsible for the attack was not identified during the attack. Alakhbar stated they were in contact with a fighter in AQIM that participated in the raid.[11][12] Katiba Macina, an affiliate of Ansar Dine, claimed involvement in the attack a few months later.[13]
The mayor of the nearby town of Diabaly stated that seven bodies clad in military uniforms were discovered in Nampala by the evening.[3]AnAFP source within MINUSMA stated eight people were killed in the attack. A Mauritanian truck driver corroborated these numbers, claiming to have seen seven bodies and one soldier dying.[7] Four Malian soldiers were injured and admitted to the hospital in Ségou.[14] On January 7, AFP confirmed eleven soldiers were killed and nine were injured.[15]
On February 7, eleven armed men suspected of being involved in the raid on Nampala and the raid on Ténenkou were arrested northeast of Diabaly.[16] A November 2018 report by the International Federation for Human Rights and the Malian Association of Human Rights stated that ten jihadists were killed in the raid.[17]