MALI: DESPICABLE KILLINGS OF CIVILIANS MUST BE INVESTIGATED

This month’s United Nations Security Council meeting on the situation in Mali should put the protection of civilians at the heart of its discussions by taking steps to renewing the mandate of the MINUSMA and by calling to an end of impunity in the country

Following the reported unlawful killings of nearly 100 people in an attack on a village in central Mali, Marie-Evelyne Petrus Barry, Amnesty International’s West and Central Africa director said:
 
“This despicable killing of civilians in Mali is the latest episode of a spiral of violence which hit the country.  It shows a total and utter contempt for human life. The growing unrest and subsequent violence reported in the center of the country are characterized by killings, enforced disappearances and burning of villages, on an appalling scale.  

“The authorities should immediately investigate these unlawful killings and bring those responsible to justice.
 
“This month’s United Nations Security Council meeting on the situation in Mali should put the protection of civilians at the heart of its discussions by taking steps to renewing the mandate of the MINUSMA and by calling to an end of impunity in the country.”

Background 
 
Several media reported today that nearly 100 people have been killed in an attack on 9 June on a village in central Mali inhabited by the Dogon ethnic group. The centre of Mali has been the scene of deadly violence for more than a year. In March, a deadly attack was perpetrated against the “Fulani” village of Ogossagou in central Mali, during which more than 150 people were killed, including women and children, and many others wounded.