Human Rights Watch released a report Monday accusing Mali’s armed forces and Russia’s Africa Corps of conducting 47 drone strikes that killed 94 civilians between April and August, a figure that more than doubles the 44 deaths from the same period last year.
The report catalogues several indiscriminate attacks, including an August 19 strike on a cattle market in Bandiagara that killed six men, and a July 29 pre‑dawn strike on a health centre in Kidal that left multiple civilians wounded. It also cites a July 12 incident in Segou where soldiers reportedly shot five young girls, mistaking them for attackers.
HRW further documents abuses by insurgent groups, noting that JNIM’s sharia committee acknowledged the execution of 19 soldiers in Gao, while the Tuareg‑led Azawad Liberation Front denies responsibility.
Neither the Malian army nor the Russian embassy responded to requests for comment, and the report will be submitted to the UN Human Rights Council in September, where an independent inquiry could be demanded.