Mali concerns

The Department of State continues to warn against all travel to northern Mali due to kidnapping threats against Westerners. Also of concern are continued Tuareg unrest, sporadic banditry and the porous nature of Mali’s northern borders with Algeria, Niger and Mauritania.

US government employees in Mali need approval before traveling to the region of Kidal, areas north and east of Gao (and along the road to Ansongo), Timbuktu and points north. This restriction includes the site of the Tuareg music festival at Essakane.