Assimi Goïta
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Colonel Assimi Goïta (born 1983) is a
Mali Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Mali ...
an military officer who has been interim
President of Mali This is a list of heads of state of Mali since the country gained independence from France in 1960 to the present day. A total of seven people have served as head of state of Mali (excluding three acting presidents). Additionally, two people, ...
since 28 May 2021. Goïta was the leader of the , a
military junta A military junta () is a government led by a committee of military leaders. The term ''junta'' means "meeting" or "committee" and originated in the national and local junta organized by the Spanish resistance to Napoleon's invasion of Spain in ...
that seized power from former president
Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta (; 29 January 1945 – 16 January 2022), often known by his initials IBK, was a Malian politician who served as the president of Mali from September 2013 to August 2020, when he was forced to resign in the 2020 Malian cou ...
in the 2020 Malian coup d'état. Goïta later took power from
Bah Ndaw Bah Ndaw (also spelled N'Daw, N'Dah, and N'Daou; born 23 August 1950) is a Malian military officer and politician who served as the president of Mali between 25 September 2020 and 24 May 2021 when he was overthrown during the 2021 Malian coup d ...
after the 2021 Malian coup d'état and has since been declared interim president of Mali.


Biography

Assimi Goïta was born in 1983. The son of an officer of the
Malian Armed Forces The Malian Armed Forces (french: links=no, Forces Armées Maliennes) consists of the Army (french: Armée de Terre, links=no), Republic of Mali Air Force (french: Force Aérienne de la Republique du Mali, links=no), and National Guard (french: G ...
, he was trained in the military academies of Mali and notably attended the and the Joint Military School in Koulikoro. He is married to Lala Diallo, who is a member of the
Fula people The Fula, Fulani, or Fulɓe people ( ff, Fulɓe, ; french: Peul, links=no; ha, Fulani or Hilani; pt, Fula, links=no; wo, Pël; bm, Fulaw) are one of the largest ethnic groups in the Sahel and West Africa, widely dispersed across the region. ...
. Goïta served as a colonel in the Autonomous Special Forces Battalion, the special forces unit of the
Malian Armed Forces The Malian Armed Forces (french: links=no, Forces Armées Maliennes) consists of the Army (french: Armée de Terre, links=no), Republic of Mali Air Force (french: Force Aérienne de la Republique du Mali, links=no), and National Guard (french: G ...
. He heads the Malian special forces in the center of the country with the rank of colonel. He is thus confronted with the jihadist insurgency in Mali. In 2018, he met
Mamady Doumbouya Mamady Doumbouya (N'Ko script, N'Ko: , born 4 March 1980) is a Guinean Republic of Guinea Armed Forces, military officer serving as the interim president of Guinea since 1 October 2021. Doumbouya led 2021 Guinean coup d'état, a coup d'état on ...
, from
Guinea Guinea ( ),, fuf, 𞤘𞤭𞤲𞤫, italic=no, Gine, wo, Gine, nqo, ߖߌ߬ߣߍ߫, bm, Gine officially the Republic of Guinea (french: République de Guinée), is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the we ...
, in Burkina Faso during a training session organised by the US army, which was reserved for the region's special forces commanders. Both he and Mamady Doumbouya would later launch military coups against their governments. Goïta serves as the leader of the National Committee for the Salvation of the People, a group of rebels who overthrew
Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta (; 29 January 1945 – 16 January 2022), often known by his initials IBK, was a Malian politician who served as the president of Mali from September 2013 to August 2020, when he was forced to resign in the 2020 Malian cou ...
in the 2020 Malian coup d'état, and have pledged to initiate new elections to replace him. Because of this pledge, the
Economic Community of West African States The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS; also known as in French and Portuguese) is a regional political union, political and economic union of fifteen countries located in West Africa. Collectively, these countries comprise an ...
(ECOWAS) pressured Mali's ruling junta for the country to be led by a civilian. On 21 September he was named vice president by a group of 17 electors, with
Bah Ndaw Bah Ndaw (also spelled N'Daw, N'Dah, and N'Daou; born 23 August 1950) is a Malian military officer and politician who served as the president of Mali between 25 September 2020 and 24 May 2021 when he was overthrown during the 2021 Malian coup d ...
being appointed president. He was appointed vice president of the Transition on 21 September 2020, a position he will hold for 18 months, until new elections. He took the oath of office on 25 September 2020. On 1 October 2020, the "Mali Transition Letter" was published where it was specified, in response to the request of the ECOWAS, that the vice president "in charge of defense and security issues" would not be able to replace President Bah Ndaw. Goïta received training from the United States, France, and Germany, and had experience working with
United States Army Special Forces The United States Army Special Forces (SF), colloquially known as the "Green Berets" due to their distinctive service Berets of the United States Army, headgear, are a special operations special operations force, force of the United States Ar ...
. On 24 May 2021, Goïta was involved in the 2021 Malian coup d'état, after which he seized power. President Ndaw and Prime Minister
Moctar Ouane Moctar Ouane (born 11 October 1955) is a Malian diplomat and politician who served as the acting Prime Minister of Mali from 27 September 2020 to 24 May 2021, between the 2020 Malian coup d'état and the 2021 Malian coup d'état. He also previousl ...
were detained. Goïta claimed that Ndaw was attempting to "sabotage" the transition to democracy, and committed to elections in 2022. The coup was instigated by Goïta's claim that Ndaw failed to consult him about a cabinet reshuffle. It was alleged that one of the motives for the latest coup was the removal of Colonel Sadio Camara as defense minister. Camara was appointed again as defense minister by Goïta upon taking over again. On 28 May 2021, the constitutional court declared him interim president of Mali. The court ruling stated that Goïta should carry the title "president of the transition, head of state" to "lead the transition process to its conclusion". On the same day, he said that he would name a prime minister from the M5-RFP coalition.


Assassination attempt

On 20 July 2021, during an
assassination Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have ...
attempt, Goïta was attacked by a knifeman while praying at the Grand Mosque in
Bamako Bamako ( bm, ߓߡߊ߬ߞߐ߬ ''Bàmakɔ̌'', ff, 𞤄𞤢𞤥𞤢𞤳𞤮 ''Bamako'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Mali, with a 2009 population of 1,810,366 and an estimated 2022 population of 2.81 million. It is located on t ...
amid festivities for the
Eid al-Adha Eid al-Adha () is the second and the larger of the two main holidays celebrated in Islam (the other being Eid al-Fitr). It honours the willingness of Ibrahim (Abraham) to sacrifice his son Ismail (Ishmael) as an act of obedience to Allah's co ...
. The attacker was then immediately arrested after failing to stab the President. Overall two men were arrested by the security forces. One of them was however found to be a special forces soldier wrongly assumed to be the attacker's accomplice. The knifeman, identified as a teacher, died in custody five days after the attack. The cause of death is unknown.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Goïta, Assimi 1983 births Living people Year of birth uncertain Date of birth missing (living people) Leaders who took power by coup Heads of state of Mali Malian military personnel Vice presidents of Mali Colonels (military rank) 21st-century Malian people