Mali faces a deep political, security and humanitarian crisis after soldiers overthrew President Amadou Toumani Touré in late March, ending two decades of democratic rule. The junta, led by Capt. Amadou Sanogo, said it acted because the government had mishandled a Tuareg rebellion in the north. Instead, the coup created a power vacuum that allowed rebels to advance rapidly and seize Kidal, Gao and Timbuktu, leaving northern Mali under their control.

The northern forces have different aims. The National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA), drawing support from the Tuareg people, seeks an independent state. Ansar Dine, an Islamist group linked to al-Qaeda in North Africa, wants Mali to remain united under Islamic law. Residents reported that Islamist fighters had ransacked bars, banned alcohol and Western music, and told people in Timbuktu to live according to Islamic law. Civilians were fleeing toward Mopti in fear of further advances. Since January, more than 200,000 people had been displaced, including 100,000 who fled Mali, according to the UN refugee agency. The conflict has worsened a food crisis affecting Mali and neighboring countries, where aid agencies say 13 million people need assistance after drought.

West African leaders, concerned that Mali’s collapse could destabilize the region, demanded a return to civilian rule. After their deadline expired, the Economic Community of West African States imposed sanctions, closing borders and freezing Mali’s account at the regional central bank; the African Union also imposed sanctions. Sanogo said the army would remain in power but promised consultations on a transition body to organize democratic elections. While a former Malian minister said the junta and the MNLA were open to talks, an MNLA spokesman denied direct contact and said the rebels would negotiate only with a recognized authority.

The embargo has caused long queues at fuel stations in landlocked Mali, which imports its fuel overland. Shortages threaten irrigation and electricity supplies during the hot season, when low water levels limit hydropower and diesel generators are needed. The frozen account has also raised questions about whether civil servants will be paid.

The fighting poses a threat to Timbuktu’s cultural heritage. UNESCO called for protection of its distinctive mud-and-wood mosques and cemeteries, as well as its ancient manuscripts. The city’s collections, held partly in family libraries, document centuries of Islamic scholarship, science, mathematics and history. Rebel control could disrupt efforts to preserve, digitize and study them.