(Adnkronos) – Russian paramilitaries from the Africa Corps, who support Mali in the fight against insurgents, reportedly killed nine civilians, including four children, during an operation in July. This was reported by the international NGO Human Rights Watch (HRW), which states that over 100 Russian fighters, accompanied by some Malian soldiers, stormed a village in the central Mopti region at dawn on July 10, searching for jihadists. The village of Bombori had been under the control of the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM), linked to Al-Qaeda, since 2017. The group also had a base nearby. “They forcibly entered homes in the Fulani-inhabited neighborhood, dragged people out, and gathered at least 80 men and boys under a tree,” the human rights organization stated.
The Fulani ethnic group is regularly accused of providing a growing number of fighters to jihadist groups in much of West Africa. “The fighters beat the men and boys, questioned them about alleged ties to Islamist armed groups, and threatened them with death if they refused to provide information,” HRW stated. “They shot and killed six civilians who tried to flee, while three others were arrested and then executed; one of them was beheaded,” the organization added.
After the departure of the Africa Corps fighters, residents recovered nine bodies: five men and four minors aged between 6 and 17, according to HRW. The non-governmental organization stated that it had remotely interviewed 13 people, including four witnesses to the attack and nine civil society representatives and local community leaders. The military junta in power in Mali, which came to government after two successive coups in 2020 and 2021, has distanced itself from the former colonial power, France, and has moved closer to Russia, both militarily and politically.
