Mali faces a deepening political, security and humanitarian crisis after soldiers overthrew President Amadou Toumani Touré in late March. The junta said it acted because the government had mishandled a Tuareg rebellion in the north. Instead, the coup created a power vacuum that enabled rebels to advance rapidly and take the major northern towns of Kidal, Gao and Timbuktu.

The rebel forces have different goals. The National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) seeks an independent Tuareg state in northern Mali. Ansar Dine, an Islamist group linked to al-Qaeda’s North African branch, wants Mali to remain united under Islamic law. Residents reported that Islamist fighters had ransacked bars, banned Western music on local radio and told people in Timbuktu to observe Islamic law. Some civilians were fleeing the central town of Mopti amid fears that fighting could move south.

West African leaders fear Mali’s collapse could destabilize the wider Sahel, where Tuareg communities span national borders and several countries have recently experienced political unrest. After the junta failed to meet a deadline to restore civilian rule, the Economic Community of West African States imposed an embargo, closed borders and froze Mali’s account at the regional central bank. The African Union also imposed sanctions. Junta leader Capt. Amadou Sanogo said the army would remain in power but promised consultations on a transition body and eventual democratic elections in which the military would not participate.

The sanctions immediately strained daily life. Landlocked Mali imports all its fuel, and long lines formed at petrol stations as people stocked up for transport, irrigation and electricity generation. Supplies were expected to run low within days, while reduced water levels threatened hydropower during the hot season. The frozen account also raised concerns about the government’s ability to pay civil servants. Reports differed on prospects for negotiations: a representative of the junta said the MNLA was open to talks, but a rebel spokesman said the group did not recognize Sanogo and had had no direct contact with the junta.

The fighting has displaced more than 200,000 people since January, including about 100,000 who fled Mali, according to the UN refugee agency. It has also worsened a regional food emergency: aid agencies say 13 million people need food assistance following drought.

UNESCO warned that fighting could damage Timbuktu’s World Heritage sites, including its distinctive mud-and-wood mosques and cemeteries. The city is also home to hundreds of thousands of ancient manuscripts documenting Islamic scholarship, science, mathematics and history. The takeover threatens access to the collections and efforts to preserve them.