ISIS Militants Kill Up to 70 Civilians in Mali in Retaliation Attack

Islamic State-linked militants have killed up to 70 civilians in Mali, some of whom were reportedly burned alive, in apparent retaliation for an attack on suspected informants by pro-government forces.

The violence, which occurred over the weekend in the eastern Menaka region, has intensified combat between the regional Islamic State Sahel Province (ISSP) and al Qaeda affiliates, further destabilizing West Africa's Sahel region.

The ISSP attacks took place in at least five localities. The full death toll was still being determined as of Tuesday. Provisional death tolls provided by sources ranged from 48 to over 70.

According to a municipal official in Menaka, militiamen from the pro-government group MSA, accompanied by Mali's army and Africa Corps—a Russian paramilitary group supporting Bamako—committed abuses against civilians suspected of being informants for the Islamic State. This reportedly included the killing of about a dozen people, burning of houses, and theft of property.

In response, ISSP fighters set houses ablaze and stole livestock on Sunday, causing hundreds of civilians to flee to Menaka town. Some civilians died in the fires, while others were shot.

The ISSP has not claimed responsibility for the retaliatory killings. A Malian military spokesperson and Russia's embassy in Bamako did not respond to requests for comment.

Mali has been grappling with insurgent violence since 2012. The regional al Qaeda affiliate, Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), and the Tuareg-led Azawad Liberation Front have conducted nationwide attacks. In recent weeks, JNIM and ISSP have engaged in fierce fighting.

Last week, ISSP claimed to have killed 400 JNIM fighters in Burkina Faso, an incident that, if confirmed, would be the deadliest single battle between the two groups. ISSP and JNIM have clashed hundreds of times since 2019, resulting in over 2,000 deaths, according to the conflict monitoring group Armed Conflict Location & Event Data (ACLED).

A report released Monday by Human Rights Watch stated that Mali's armed forces and their Russian backers have used "apparent indiscriminate" drone strikes and committed other abuses during an intensified offensive against insurgents, resulting in scores of civilian deaths. The report cited ACLED data showing that drone strikes and civilian casualties more than doubled between April and August compared to the same period last year, in response to attacks by JNIM and Tuareg-led separatists.

From April to August, Malian forces and Africa Corps carried out 47 drone strikes resulting in 94 civilian deaths, an increase from 22 strikes and 44 civilian deaths a year earlier. Human Rights Watch noted some incidents as "apparent indiscriminate drone strikes," including an August 19 strike on a cattle market that killed six men and a July 29 strike on a health center in the Kidal region.

The report also documented abuses not involving drones, such as an incident on July 12 in the Segou region where soldiers allegedly shot and killed five young girls they mistook for attackers. Human Rights Watch also documented abuses by JNIM and the Tuareg-led separatists, including the execution of 19 soldiers in the Gao region in July. JNIM's Sharia Committee stated the killings occurred but denied ordering them, while the Azawad Liberation Front denied executing soldiers.