Five Indian nationals have been abducted in Mali, officials confirmed on Saturday, as the West African nation battles mounting violence driven by Al-Qaeda and ISIS-linked terror group.

According to news agency AFP, some armed men kidnapped the Indians on Thursday near Kobri in western Mali. They were employed by a firm involved in local electrification projects, a security source said.

A representative of the company told AFP that all other Indian workers had since been evacuated to the capital, Bamako. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the abductions.

"We confirm the kidnapping of five Indian nationals. The other Indians working for the company have been evacuated to Bamako, the capital," the representative said.

Mali, ruled by a military junta, has faced years of instability and growing extremist violence. The Al-Qaeda-linked Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM) has recently tightened a crippling fuel blockade, worsening an already severe economic crisis.

Kidnappings of foreign nationals are not uncommon in Mali, where repeated coups and jihadist attacks have eroded state control since 2012.

In September this year, JNIM fighters had abducted two Emirati citizens and an Iranian near Bamako. They were released last week after a ransom of around USD 50 million was reportedly paid.

Born out of a Tuareg rebellion in 2012, the JNIM has steadily expanded its reach from northern Mali into the country's centre and across borders into Burkina Faso and Niger. Mali's junta leader, Assimi Goita, came to power vowing to crush the insurgency, but his decision to cut defence ties with France and the United States and pivot toward Russia has delivered little success.

While Bamako remains under government control, the prospect of JNIM advancing toward the capital worries many Malians. In areas, it dominates, the group has imposed strict rules, restricting movement and ordering women to wear hijab on public transport.

Source: India Today