Mali's army and Russian Africa Corps linked to drone strikes that killed 94 civilians - report
Drone strikes by Mali's armed forces and their Russian allies killed 94 civilians between April and August 2026, more than double the death toll recorded during the same period last year, according to data cited in a Human Rights Watch report published on October 19.
The US-based conflict monitoring organization ACLED recorded 47 drone strikes involving Malian forces and Russia's Africa Corps during the five-month period, compared with 22 strikes that killed 44 civilians a year earlier, Reuters reported.
Human Rights Watch said some of the strikes appeared to be indiscriminate, raising concerns about the conduct of military operations against Islamist militants and separatist groups.
Among the incidents documented was an August 19 drone strike on a cattle market in central Mali's Bandiagara region that killed six men. Another strike hit a health center in the northern Kidal region on July 29.
The rights organization also reported abuses unrelated to drone strikes, including an incident on July 12 in which soldiers allegedly shot and killed five young girls in the Ségou region after mistaking them for attackers.
Mali's military government, which came to power through coups in 2020 and 2021, has relied on Russian military support in its fight against insurgents. Russian Africa Corps personnel joined the response to a wave of attacks launched in April by the al-Qaeda-affiliated group JNIM and Tuareg-led separatists.
The April 25 attacks killed Mali's defense minister and targeted several towns, military installations and the main airport in the capital, Bamako.
A Malian military spokesperson did not respond to Reuters' request for comment. Human Rights Watch also received no response to a letter outlining its findings sent to Mali's defense minister in August. Russia's embassy in Bamako did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Africa Corps' involvement.
Mali has previously denied killing civilians during counterinsurgency operations.
The Human Rights Watch report also documented abuses by insurgent groups, including the execution of 19 soldiers in the northern Gao region in July. JNIM acknowledged that the killings took place but denied ordering them, while the Tuareg-led Azawad Liberation Front denied responsibility.
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