UN calls for Mali to probe alleged executions by army and Russian mercenaries
DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — United Nations experts on Wednesday urged Malian authorities to investigate reports of alleged summary executions and forced disappearances by the army and Russian mercenaries, following the discovery of dozens of bodies near a military camp last week.
According to a statement from the U.N. humanitarian agency, the bodies were found near the Kwala military camp in western Mali's Koulikoro region between April 21 and 22, and are suspected to be those of men arrested by Malian soldiers and mercenaries from the Russia-backed Wagner Group ten days earlier.
Citing 'unconfirmed reports,' the agency said around 60 men, most of them ethnic Fulani, were allegedly tortured and interrogated at the camp about alleged links with 'terrorists," before being executed.
The Associated Press has not been able to independently verify the reports. Spokespeople for Mali's military and the government did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The U.N. experts said that, if confirmed, the killings may amount to war crimes, while the forced disappearances may constitute crimes against humanity. They urged Malian authorities to conduct an independent and transparent investigation into the killings and forced disappearances of the men.
Fulani people — also known as the Peuhl — are disproportionately represented in Islamic militant groups in central Mali, which has led to them being stigmatized by other ethnic groups and security forces.
Mali, along with neighbors Burkina Faso and Niger, has for more than a decade battled an insurgency fought by armed groups, including some allied with al-Qaida and the Islamic State group.
Following military coups in all three nations in recent years, the ruling juntas have expelled French forces and turned to Russian mercenary units for security assistance instead. Since seizing power in 2021, interim president Assimi Goita has struggled to curb violence in Mali, while the army has been accused of targeting civilians.
In December, Human Rights Watch accused Malian armed forces and the Wagner Group of deliberately killing at least 32 civilians over an 8-month span.
____
Follow AP's Africa coverage at: https://apnews.com/hub/africa
Mark Banchereau, The Associated Press
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hamilton Spectator
11 minutes ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Trump says he will ‘liberate' Los Angeles in speech to mark the 250th anniversary of the Army
FORT BRAGG, N.C. (AP) — President Donald Trump called protesters in Los Angeles 'animals' and 'a foreign enemy' in a speech at Fort Bragg on Tuesday as he defended deploying the military on demonstrators opposed to his immigration enforcement raids. Trump, in his most aggressive language yet regarding the protests in Los Angeles, used a speech ostensibly supposed to be used to recognize the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army to denounce the demonstrators while repeating his false statements about the 2020 election being rigged and attacking the previous commander-in-chief, former President Joe Biden. The Republican president, who sees the military as a critical tool for domestic goals, has used the recent protests in Los Angeles as an opportunity to deploy the National Guard and U.S. Marines over the objections of California's Democratic governor to quell disturbances that began as protests over immigration raids. While protesters blocked a major freeway and set cars on fire over the weekend in Los Angeles, the demonstrations in the city of 4 million people have largely been centered in several blocks of downtown. 'We will not allow an American city to be invaded and conquered by a foreign enemy. That's what they are,' Trump said Tuesday. Trump's heated rhetoric came has he's left open the possibility of invoking the Insurrection Act, one of the most extreme emergency powers available to the president. It authorizes him to deploy military forces inside the U.S. to suppress rebellion or domestic violence or to enforce the law in certain situations. The president also called Los Angeles 'a trash heap' with 'entire neighborhoods under control' of criminals and said the federal government would 'use every asset at our disposal to quell the violence and restore law and order.' 'We will liberate Los Angeles and make it free, clean, and safe again,' Trump added. Trump also announced his administration was restoring the names of seven military bases that were given the monikers of Confederate leaders until being changed by the Biden administration. Fort Pickett, Fort Hood, Fort Gordon, Fort Rucker, Fort Polk, Fort A.P. Hill and Fort Robert E. Lee will have their names changed back, Trump said. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth already brought back the names of Fort Bragg and Fort Benning in Georgia. 'Can you believe they changed that name in the last administration for a little bit?' Trump said. 'We'll forget all about that.' Before he spoke, Trump watched the U.S. Army demonstrate a missile strike, a helicopter assault and a building raid, a preview of the kind of show of American military might he's expected to display in the nation's capital for a massive military parade this weekend . Fort Bragg, which is located near Fayetteville, North Carolina, serves as headquarters for U.S. Army Special Operations Command. Highly trained units like the Green Berets and the 82nd Airborne are based there. The atmosphere resembled a state fair with military flair. Inflatable slides and attractions for children were set up in a field, with artillery, trucks and helicopters parked on another section of the lawn. Right outside the security checkpoint — but still on the base — two stands were selling Trump political hats, T-shirts and other paraphernalia. Hegseth and Army Secretary Dan Driscoll were also at Tuesday's event, along with service members, veterans and their families. Hegseth, who has said he's ridding the military of 'woke,' told the crowd at Fort Bragg that the U.S. is 'restoring the warrior ethos' to its armed forces. 'We're not a college or a university. We're not interested in your woke garbage and political correctness,' Hegseth said, drawing cheers. Driscoll, who spoke to the crowd earlier in the afternoon, called Trump 'the greatest recruiter in our Army's history.' Trump has promoted the Army's anniversary as a reason to hold a military parade in Washington on Saturday, which is also his 79th birthday. Tanks and other vehicles will roll down city streets in a reminder of how the Republican president is reshaping the armed forces after returning to the White House this year. Trump has authorized the deployment of 4,000 National Guard soldiers to the city over the objections of California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat. About 700 Marines were deployed to the Los Angeles area, but had not yet been sent to respond to the protests. California sued Trump over the deployment, with the state attorney general arguing that the president had 'trampled' the state's sovereignty. California leaders accused Trump of fanning protesters' anger, leading crowds to block off a major freeway and set self-driving cars on fire. ___ Price reported from Washington. Associated Press writer Lolita Baldor in Washington contributed to this report. Follow the AP's coverage of President Donald Trump at . ___ This story has been corrected to reflect that the 82nd Airborne Division, not the U.S. Army Rangers, is based at Fort Bragg. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Associated Press
14 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Mexico's security chief says drug cartels are recruiting former Colombian soldiers
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico's most powerful drug cartels are recruiting former Colombian soldiers, leading Mexico to turn away dozens of Colombians trying to enter the country in recent weeks, Mexico's security chief said Tuesday. Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch's comments followed the arrest last week of 12 Colombians in the western state of Michoacan in connection with a mine attack that killed eight Mexican soldiers. Through contact with Colombian authorities, García Harfuch said that nine of the 12 individuals were former soldiers and the remaining three were civilians with weapons training. Close underworld ties have long existed between organized crime groups in Mexico and Colombia. For many years, Colombian drug traffickers produced cocaine and heroin and moved it themselves by boat or plane to the United States. Later, as U.S. authorities cracked down on trafficking in the Caribbean, Mexican cartels' power grew as they moved Colombian drugs over land and via small plane to the U.S. border and smuggled them across. Decades of internal conflict in Colombia have produced tens of thousands of former soldiers, paramilitaries and guerrillas with weapons training and combat experience. Colombians have been hired guns in the 2021 assassination of Haiti President Jovenel Moïse and in the ongoing war in Ukraine. In recent weeks, Mexican immigration authorities rejected 69 Colombians trying to enter Mexico, some of whom in interviews said 'they had been coopted by some criminal group.' García Harfuch said Tuesday that both the Sinaloa and Jalisco New Generation cartels were recruiting Colombians. Colombia's ambassador to Mexico, Fernando García, said last week that he feared the arrests would negatively impact ongoing negotiations with Mexico to reduce the number of Colombians prevented from entering the country at Mexican airports. In March, the Colombian government had said that talks with Mexico were progressing with mechanisms for Mexico and Colombia to verify information about those seeking to enter Mexico. In October 2023, Mexican authorities arrested eight Colombians also in Michoacan state, who allegedly were helping to make explosives dropped by cartel drones. Former soldiers from other countries have worked with Mexican cartels too. More than a decade ago, the fearsome Zetas, whose leaders came from Mexico's military, recruited former members of Guatemala's special forces Kaibiles in their ranks. ____ Follow AP's coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at
Associated Press
14 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Associated Press seeks full appeals court hearing on access to Trump administration events
The Associated Press on Tuesday asked for a hearing before the full U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington, seeking to overturn a three-judge panel's ruling that allowed the Trump administration to continue blocking AP access to some presidential events — a four-month case that has raised questions about what level of journalistic access to the presidency the First Amendment permits. Three judges of that court on Friday, in a 2-1 decision, said it was OK for Trump to continue keeping AP journalists out of Oval Office or other small events out in retaliation over the news outlet's decision not to follow his lead in changing the Gulf of Mexico's name. He had sought a pause of a lower court's ruling in AP's favor in April that the administration was improperly punishing the news organization for the content of its speech. 'The decision of the appellate panel to pause the district court's order allows the White House to discriminate and retaliate over words it does not like, a violation of the First Amendment,' AP spokesman Patrick Maks said. 'We are seeking a rehearing of this decision by the full appellate court because an essential American principle is at stake.' A hearing before the full court would change the landscape — and possibly the outcome as well. The two judges who ruled in Trump's favor on Friday had been appointed to the bench by him. The full court consists of nine members appointed by Democratic presidents, and six by Republicans. The news outlet's access to events in the Oval Office and Air Force One was cut back starting in February after the AP said it would continue referring to the Gulf of Mexico in its copy, while noting Trump's wishes that it instead be renamed the Gulf of America. For decades, a reporter and photographer for the AP — a 179-year-old wire service whose material is sent to thousands of news outlets across the world and carried on its own website, reaching billions of people — had been part of a small-group 'pool' that covers a president in places where space is limited. Now, an AP photographer routinely gets access to these events, while text reporters rarely do. ___ David Bauder writes about media for the AP. Follow him at and
