Senegal-Mali trade threatened as militants set lorries ablaze near Kayes

Islamists fighters are trying to prevent deliveries of fuel and other essential supplies to landlocked Mali.

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In a rare acknowledgement of the seriousness of the situation affecting the landlocked country, Prime Minister Abdoulaye Maïga said the authorities were trying to improve security on the routes.

The blockade - a potentially serious escalation of Mali's long-running jihadist insurgency - is particularly affecting the supply of fuel, which could cripple the country.

The Sahel region of West Africa is known as the epicentre of global terrorism, accounting for more than 50% of all terrorism-related deaths.

Several analysts say the aim of the al-Qaeda-linked militants is to impose a blockade of the capital, Bamako.