Mali's capital city Bamako - a major West African hub and home to more than three million people - is under a partial blockade by Islamist militants, days after the country's defence minister was assassinated there.
"Our army isn't capable of protecting us, how are we going to get back home?" a mother-of-two told the BBC, unable to re-enter Bamako after visiting her parents out of town.
She and many others have been stranded on the Bamako-Kéniéba highway, a major road out of the capital for almost a day.
It follows Wednesday's warning by fighters from the group Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) that "no-one will be allowed in any more".
Last year, the Islamist groups imposed a fuel blockade on the city, causing shortages and a sharp increase in prices but they have now ordered a total blockade, leaving residents worried.
