Mali Civilians Bear Cost of Junta's Security Campaign

The Malian military and its Russian paramilitary allies killed and wounded scores of civilians in attacks and in custody, Human Rights Watch said. Malian soldiers and allied Dozo militiamen also faced allegations over civilian deaths. In a report published Monday, October 19, 2026, HRW said the abuses violated international humanitarian law.

Civilian toll of military operations

HRW based its report on interviews it conducted between July 30 and September 20 with 30 people in central and northern Mali, including human rights activists, community leaders, journalists and a Malian soldier. The report documented two drone attacks it called “apparently indiscriminate.”

One attack partially destroyed a health centre in Talhandak village, in the northern Kidal region, in July. Another struck a market in Tombonkore, a central village, in August, killing six civilians and injuring at least 20 others, according to HRW.

In mid-July, Malian soldiers “shot and killed five girls” during a counter-insurgency operation in the central Segou region, the report said. Later that month, their Dozo militia allies “killed three civilians” in the central Mopti region. HRW said the killings were carried out “all with impunity.”

The report also described deaths in military custody and during attacks by armed groups. On July 18, JNIM and the mainly Tuareg Azawad Liberation Front, or FLA, attacked a military convoy in Tabrichat, in the northeastern Gao region. HRW said the groups then “tortured and executed at least 19 Malian soldiers taken prisoner.”

JNIM, also known as the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims, admitted that prisoners were killed but denied ordering the deaths. The FLA acknowledged clashes with the army and Russians in Tabrichat, but denied executing soldiers.

Junta turns to Russian forces

Mali’s security crisis has pitted the army and its Russian allies against jihadist fighters, Tuareg separatist groups and criminal gangs since 2012. The junta has ruled since back-to-back coups in 2020 and 2021, and turned to Russia for support.

The junta enlisted paramilitaries from the Wagner Group, which became the Africa Corps in 2025. HRW’s report concerns civilian deaths and injuries linked to Malian military operations and its Russian paramilitary allies, while also documenting killings by armed groups and insurgent forces.

A late-September report by Amnesty International said Mali’s armed forces and Wagner Group personnel committed war crimes, including killing and torturing civilians, during joint operations across the country between 2023 and 2025.

Calls for action

HRW said, “The Malian military, armed groups and insurgent forces are committing grave laws-of-war violations while international organisations and governments largely stand by.” It urged the African Union’s Peace and Security Council to “urgently take action to prevent further atrocities” in Mali.

The report’s documented cases include deaths caused by army operations and allied militia, drone strikes on a health centre and a market, and armed groups’ execution of captured soldiers. HRW’s appeal to the African Union followed its findings on those violations.