Analysis-Mali faces spectre of anarchy after demanding UN's departure

FILE PHOTO: United Nations peacekeepers at the MINUSMA base fight fires after a mortar attack in Kidal, Mali, June 8, 2017. Picture taken June 8, 2017. MINUSMA/Sylvain Liechti/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo

DAKAR/NAIROBI (Reuters) - Mali's unexpected demand for the departure of U.N. peacekeepers may herald a sudden end to a decade-long mission that has struggled to protect civilians and its own troops, raising fears the country could slide deeper into chaos amid an Islamist insurgency and the possible revival of a separatist uprising.

The U.N. mission, known as MINUSMA, has been hobbled by restrictions on its air and ground operations since Mali's ruling junta joined forces with Russian military contractor Wagner Group in 2021, limiting its effectiveness against an Islamist insurgency that took root a decade ago and has since spread across West Africa.