Colonel Abdoulaye Maiga, Minister of State, Minister of Territorial Administration and Decentralization, Government Spokesman of Mali, looks on during the meeting of ministers of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), in Ouagadougou. AFP
Abdoulaye Maiga had until now served as the government's spokesman.
The West African country, plagued by jihadist and separatist violence, has been led by the military since back-to-back coups in 2020 and 2021.
"Major General Abdoulaye Maiga is appointed prime minister," said a decree issued by junta chief General Assimi Goita and read out by the secretary general of the presidency on state television station ORTM.
Abdoulaye Maiga was not in the first group of colonels who overthrew the civilian president in August 2020 and who have since been promoted to generals, but he quickly joined them.
His appointment to replace civilian prime minister Choguel Kokalla Maiga seems to confirm the military's hold on power.
Kokalla Maiga on Saturday publicly condemned the lack of clarity regarding the end of the transition to civilian rule.
In June 2022, the junta promised to organise elections and hand over power to civilians by the end of March 2024, but later postponed elections indefinitely.
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