Northern Mali Conflict

Mali has played host to a raft of extremist groups in recent years but people's reasons for joining are often the same.

Al-Qaeda affiliates are active in the region.

Some of the groups were involved in the 2012 northern Mali uprising.

Jihadi groups regularly target army and U.N. bases in northern Mali.

A 2015 peace deal is aimed at resolving the causes of a 2012 revolution in northern Mali.

Irregular migration from Africa to the EU has increased by 13 percent in 2016.

Militant Islamist groups are ramping up attacks in Mali as a peace deal falters.

Boko Haram and Al-Qaeda fighters are thought to be held in the prison outside Niger's capital Niamey.

Ahmad al-Faqi al-Mahdi led the destruction of nine historic shrines and a 15th-century mosque.

The Ansar Dine leader had a penchant for whisky and served as a diplomat in Saudi Arabia.

Militants have killed 68 U.N. peacekeepers in Mali in the past three years, but the blue helmets aren't giving up yet.

Al-Qaeda's regional branch is suspected of two attacks that killed four people on Tuesday.

Several militant groups, including Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, are active in northern Mali.