HRW: Militias Kill Over 75 Civilians in Mali

Ethnic militias in Mali killed at least 75 civilians during a one-week period in early December 2018.

Ariana News Agency- Malian authorities began investigations into the incidents and made some arrests, and should appropriately prosecute militia members and their leaders implicated in the killings. Among those who should be investigated is Youssouf Toloba, head of Dan Na Ambassagou, an ethnic Dogon militia, whose forces have been implicated in many killings in 2018.

In central Mali, ethnic Dogon militia killed at least 34 ethnic Peuhl civilians in three attacks in the Bankass administrative region, on December 5, 12 and 13. In northern Mali, armed Peuhl men attacked two Tuareg nomadic camps on December 12, leaving over 45 dead. The attacks followed many others in the past year arising from longstanding competition over land and water and the recent presence of Islamist armed groups.

“Militia killings of civilians in central and northern Mali are spiraling out of control,” said Corinne Dufka, Sahel director at Human Rights Watch. “The authorities need to take prompt and effective action against the militias if they are going to bring the cycles of killings and reprisals to an end.”

Human Rights Watch interviewed six witnesses by telephone about the recent incidents and received lists of those killed.

In the Bankass administrative area on December 12, Dan Na Ambassagou attacked two villages and commandeered a large truck in the village of Gari. They took the truck, which carried over 60 residents who had fled the village of Mora fearing an imminent attack, and drove it to Wella village. There, the militiamen ordered the males to come out of the truck and killed seven men and boys. They also demanded a ransom in exchange for the freedom of the remaining civilians. Villagers said that the next day, December 13, Dan Na Ambassagou militia attacked Mora, allegedly killing at least a dozen people.