INTERNACIONAL
‘Depart immediately’: State Department warns Americans as al Qaeda threatens to overrun African Nation
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As the West African country of Mali teeters on becoming the first nation on the continent to be ruled by an al Qaeda–linked terror organization, a State Department spokesperson warned American citizens to leave or not travel there.
On the situation in Mali, the spokesperson told Fox News Digital, «Do Not Travel for any reason due to crime, terrorism, kidnapping, unrest and health risks,» while cautioning, «U.S. citizens should avoid travel to Mali, and those currently in Mali should depart immediately.»
The U.S. embassy in Mali also posted on their website, «U.S. citizens should depart using commercial aviation, as overland routes to neighboring countries may not be safe for travel due to terrorist attacks along national highways.»
It also warned Americans not to try to travel outside the capital city. «The U.S. Embassy in Bamako is rarely able to provide emergency services or support to U.S. citizens outside the capital,» noting the information was still relevant as of Monday.
NIGER FALLOUT UNDER BIDEN LEAVES US TROOPS ‘BLIND’ IN BATTLE WITH TERROR GROUPS
A general view of Modibo Keita International Airport in Bamako, Mali, as the State Department warns Americans to avoid the country and urges those already there to leave amid rising terror threats, blocked routes and worsening insecurity, officials say. (AFP via Getty Images)
A former senior military official with detailed knowledge of the situation has told Fox News Digital that the situation in Mali has made a threat to the U.S. homeland «increasingly likely.»
Islamist JNIM fighters have surrounded its capital, Bamako, preventing fuel tankers from reaching the city and setting fire to some vehicles. The Malian army has tried to break the blockade by mounting armed convoys for the trucks, but JNIM has attacked several of these.
Maj. Gen. Kenneth P. Ekman, a retired Air Force general, told Fox News Digital he believes Mali’s success at keeping JNIM at bay is important — for Washington. Ekman was a key player for the U.S. military in Mali, Niger and other Sahel countries as the Department of Defense’s West Africa Coordination Element lead for U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) until he retired earlier this year.
«The U.S. still has security interests in West Africa,» he said. «An external operations threat to the American homeland is intolerable, increasingly likely and far more difficult to detect given the dearth of remaining U.S. forces and intelligence assets in the region.»
April 24, 2012 – FILE photo: Terrorists from al Qaeda-linked group in Timbuktu, Mali. (AP)
He continued, «This threat also affects the safety and security of U.S. diplomats and their families in Bamako, Ouagadougou, Niamey (Niger) and other West African nations.»
US DRAMATICALLY ESCALATES SOMALIA AIRSTRIKES AS TRUMP ADMIN TARGETS ISIS, AL QAEDA TERRORISTS
U.S. and French troops were asked to leave Mali a year ago by the military junta that controls the country, which brought in the Russian Wagner/Afrika Corps mercenary group instead — the Kremlin’s private army. The Russians, reportedly more interested in extracting the region’s minerals, have not, Mariam Wahba told Fox News Digital, «been very helpful.» Wahba is a research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD).
Referring to the risk of the al Qaeda-linked group taking over Mali’s capital city, Ekman said, «Both Bamako and Ouagadougou (capital of neighboring Burkina Faso) are at risk.»
He continued, «JNIM seems to be gaining momentum and appears to have both expanded objectives and greater resolve.»
Geese walk in the road as trucks cross the border between the Ivory Coast and Mali in the village of Nigoun, near Tengrela, on Oct. 31, 2025. In northern Ivory Coast, truck drivers prepare to head back to neighboring Mali, aboard their tanker trucks loaded with fuel and anxiety. One acronym strikes fear into the hearts of all the truck drivers: JNIM, the name of the jihadist group affiliated with al Qaeda that decreed two months ago that no more tanker trucks would be allowed to enter Mali from a neighboring country. (Issouf Sanogo /AFP via Getty Images)
«During and after the 2024 withdrawal of American forces from Niger, the U.S. (under the Biden administration) also chose to forego keeping those forces in the region,» the former major general added. «Resultantly, the U.S. surrendered its ability to monitor and respond to the activities and growth of Sahel terrorist organizations, come to the assistance of U.S. embassies under threat, and solve crises like the October kidnapping of an American missionary.»
The missionary, a pilot, was kidnapped in Niger on Oct. 21 and has not been heard from since.
JNIM has been designated both a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) and a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) by the State Department.
«The Malian army is fighting an irregular and asymmetric enemy,» Wahba said, adding, «They are jihadists, at the end of the day, and the government is having trouble out-predicting them. If this continues, Bamako may fall in days or weeks.»
Mali’s fight with an al Qaeda terror group is on the administration’s threat radar. Last month, Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau flew to Bamako and met with the junta’s foreign minister, Abdoulaye Diop, «to discuss our shared security interests in the region.»
Caleb Weiss, senior analyst at the Bridgeway Foundation and editor at the FDD’s Long War Journal, told Fox News Digital he is worried strict Sharia Muslim law will be enforced by the terrorists in Mali, stating JNIM, «Al Qaeda’s branch in West Africa, is putting intense economic and social pressure on Bamako, likely in hopes that the military junta there will concede in some fashion.»
Weiss continued, «The regime in Bamako is absolutely overstretched, and its allies in Russia’s Wagner/Afrika Corps are proving to be ineffective.»
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«JNIM is also consolidating its position in other areas of Mali, in which they are allowed to enforce Sharia for an end to a blockade, siege or violence in general. It’s possible this is what they are seeking with Bamako as well. JNIM is far less likely to accept anything but a Mali governed by its strict interpretation of Sharia law,» he said.
Ekman said things could have been different: «Whatever access and relationship other U.S. government agencies are able to develop in countries like Mali will likely fall short of what the U.S. could have achieved in redistributing its military capabilities as they exited Niger.»
terrorism,al qaeda,africa,mali,conflicts
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The Department of War on Sunday transported a next-generation nuclear reactor aboard a C-17 from California to Utah, advancing President Donald Trump’s executive order to modernize America’s nuclear energy infrastructure and strengthen U.S. national security.
The reactor was flown from March Air Reserve Base in California to Hill Air Force Base in Utah and is expected to be transported to the Utah San Rafael Energy Lab in Orangeville for testing and evaluation – a key step in assessing how advanced nuclear systems could support military installations and remote defense operations.
The Department of War shared images on X showing the reactor loaded onto the C-17 aircraft.
«We’re advancing President Trump’s executive order on nuclear energy,» the post read. «Moments from now, we will airlift a next-generation nuclear reactor.»
TRUMP ADMIN POURS $1B INTO MASSIVE EFFORT TO RESTART NUCLEAR REACTOR AT HISTORIC MELTDOWN SITE
The Department of War said the successful delivery and installation of the reactor will open new possibilities for energy resilience and strategic independence for the nation’s defense, highlighting what officials described as an agile, innovative and commercial-first approach to addressing critical infrastructure challenges.
«By harnessing the power of advanced nuclear technology, we are not only enhancing our national security but championing a future of American energy dominance,» the agency said in a press release. «This event is a testament to the ingenuity of the American spirit and a critical advancement in securing our nation’s freedom and strength for generations to come.»
Fox News Digital has reached out to the Department of War for additional comment.
THREE MILE ISLAND NUCLEAR PLANT MAKES COMEBACK WITH $1B IN FEDERAL BACKING TO MEET INCREASING ENERGY DEMANDS
The Department of War airlifted a next-generation nuclear reactor to Utah, advancing President Trump’s push to modernize U.S. energy and strengthen national security. (U.S. Department of War X)
In May, President Donald Trump signed several executive orders aimed at expanding domestic nuclear energy development. At the time, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said America led the postwar world on «all things nuclear» until it «stagnated» and was «choked with overregulation.»
War Secretary Pete Hegseth added that the U.S. was «going to have the lights on and AI operating when others are not because of our nuclear capabilities.»
One of Trump’s nuclear directives called for reforming Energy Department research and development, accelerating reactor testing at national laboratories and establishing a pilot program for new construction.
ENERGY SECRETARY REVEALS HOW US NUCLEAR TESTS WILL WORK
Nuclear energy, the White House said in the order, «is necessary to power the next generation technologies that secure our global industrial, digital, and economic dominance, achieve energy independence, and protect our national security.»
The nuclear expansion effort is part of a broader administration push to reinforce domestic energy production and grid reliability across multiple sectors.
Days later, Trump signed another executive order directing the Department of War to work directly with coal-fired power plants on new long-term power purchasing agreements, arguing the move would ensure «more reliable power and stronger and more resilient grid power.»
The order, «Strengthening United States National Defense with America’s Beautiful Clean Coal Power Generation Fleet,» states, «The United States must ensure that our electric grid … remains resilient and reliable, and not reliant on intermittent energy sources,» calling the grid «the foundation of our national defense as well as our economic stability.»
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«It is the policy of the United States that coal is essential to our national and economic security,» the order adds.
Fox News Digital’s Jasmine Baehr and Charles Creitz contributed to this report.
donald trump,pete hegseth,defense,energy,utah
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Ukraine’s former energy minister was detained Sunday after authorities removed him from a train at the border as he allegedly attempted to flee the country, a source has confirmed to Fox News Digital.
Herman Halushchenko’s arrest, the source said, followed requests from the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) and marked an uptick in an anti-corruption probe engulfing the political spectrum.
«Halushchenko tried to escape Ukraine,» the source said under the condition of anonymity.
«The border guards had a request from NABU and SAPO about him and also to get information in case he tried to cross the border,» they added.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION STAYS SILENT AS MASSIVE UKRAINE CORRUPTION SCANDAL ROCKS ZELENSKYY’S INNER CIRCLE
Ukrainian authorities detained former energy minister Herman Halushchenko in the Operation Midas probe investigating alleged $100 million kickbacks at Energoatom nuclear company. (Valentyn Ogirenko/Reuters)
«This essentially means that because he tried to cross, the president has lost some control here.»
NABU released a statement on the matter Sunday but did not name Halushchenko, according to the Kyiv Post.
He had served as the country’s energy minister under President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, but resigned in November.
«Today, while crossing the state border, NABU detectives have detained the former Minister of Energy as part of the ‘Midas’ case,» the agency said in a statement, referring to a corruption scandal in the country’s energy sector.
«Initial investigative proceedings are ongoing, carried out in accordance with the requirements of the law and court sanctions. Details to follow,» NABU added.
‘GOLDEN TOILET’ SCANDAL: ZELENSKYY FACES DEEPEST CRISIS YET AS ALLIES ACCUSED IN $100M WARTIME SCHEME
Halushchenko had served under Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. (Sergei Grits/AP Photo)
Operation Midas centers on allegations of a $100 million embezzlement scheme within Energoatom, Ukraine’s state-owned nuclear energy company.
Investigators say funds meant for critical energy infrastructure, including wartime grid repairs after Russian attacks, were siphoned off through contract kickbacks.
Halushchenko was one of several ministers who resigned in 2025 as NABU uncovered what it described as the massive money-laundering scheme orchestrated by Tymur Mindich, also an ally of Zelenskyy.
The controversy has also affected border operations. Border head Serhiy Deineko was dismissed in January, the Kyiv Independent reported.
On Jan. 4, Valerii Vavryniuk, the agency’s first deputy, was appointed acting head of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine (SBGS), according to to Pravda.
«The last border head had also been accused of corruption,» the source said. «There is a new acting head of the border service who is not loyal to Zelenskyy but more so to the institutions.»
FORMER UKRAINIAN PM ACCUSED OF BRIBING POLITICIANS WITH US DOLLARS TO WEAKEN ZELENSKYY’S GOVERNMENT
«With the corruption probes, Zelenskyy loses control and this infuriates him,» a source told Fox News Digital. (Pavlo Bahmut/Ukrinform/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
The source also said since Halushchenko was considered an «unofficial but direct subordinate» of Zelenskyy, this latest arrest will prove difficult for Ukraine’s leader.
«Halushchenko had been [an] (unofficial but direct) subordinate to Zelenskyy, so if his corruption is proven then it will be hard to convince people the president knew nothing,» they said.
«With the corruption probes, Zelenskyy loses control and this infuriates him,» the source added.
The developments come as Zelenskyy continues to navigate Ukraine’s war with Russia.
TOP UKRAINIAN OFFICIALS IN ZELENSKYY GOVERNMENT SUBMIT RESIGNATIONS AMID $100 MILLION CORRUPTION SCANDAL
Ukrainian servicemen ride atop an APC toward frontline positions near Vuhledar, Donetsk region, Ukraine, on May 1, 2023. (Libkos/AP Photo)
The source described high emotion inside the Ukraine parliament with Zelenskyy’s «stress rising» in the wake of Herman Halushchenko’s arrest.
«Recently Zelenskyy became angry over initiatives in parliament that were not pushed through, and he shouted and threatened parliamentarians,» the source said.
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«This week he appeared quite emotionally uncontrollable and almost aggressive behind the camera, so some parliamentarians have seen his stress rise many times recently – and more than pre-war levels,» they said.
Fox News Digital has reached out to Zelenskyy’s office for comment.
ukraine,volodymyr zelenskyy,corruption,border security,crime,crime world
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