Second Battle of Timbuktu Second Battle of Timbuktu The Battle of Timbuktu was a phase of the Northern Mali conflict, taking place in late March 2013, in which two Islamist attacks targeted the Malian army in Timbuktu. With help from the French, both attacks were prevented from capturing any significant sites in the city. On the night of March 20, French and Malian forces repelled two groups of Islamist militants - one attempting to infiltrate Timbuktu regional airport and the other attempting to forcibly enter the city by car. A few hours after the fighting began, a suicide bomber approached the airport in a
Second Battle of Timbuktu killed when he went in, thinking the jihadists had already fled the city. It is believed after that a French aircraft then bombarded that house, killing the occupants in the air raid. A spokesman for the Malian army in Timbuktu said there were still rebel movements behind the military camp in the town center and in the alleyways by the 14th century Dinjareyber mosque, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. By Monday afternoon, according to the French ministry of defense, jihadists fled Timbuktu to the northeast direction after Mirage and Rafale jets flew over the city to hunt down the fighters.