(Nairobi) – The Malian army, alongside allied militias, allegedly killed a minimum of 31 civilians and set fire to homes during operations in two villages within the conflict-ridden Ségou region on October 2 and 13, according to a report from Human Rights Watch.
On October 2, Malian armed forces and Dozo militias—primarily composed of individuals from the Bambara ethnic group who have assisted in counter-insurgency for a decade—are accused of killing at least 21 men and burning down no fewer than 10 houses in the village of Kamona. Eleven days later, on October 13, these forces reportedly killed nine men and one woman in Balle, a village approximately 55 kilometers away. Both communities are situated in a central Malian area under the control of the al-Qaeda-affiliated Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (GSIM, or Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wa al-Muslimeen, JNIM). Witnesses reported that soldiers and Dozo militiamen summarily executed the villagers after accusing them of collaborating with GSIM.
“The October massacres in the Ségou region represent the latest in a series of atrocities attributed to the Malian military and its allied militias,” stated Ilaria Allegrozzi, a senior Sahel researcher at Human Rights Watch. “The Malian authorities must initiate a credible and impartial investigation into these killings and ensure that those responsible are brought to justice through fair trials.”
Human Rights Watch conducted telephone interviews in October with 10 individuals knowledgeable about the events, including five witnesses and five community leaders, civil society activists, and journalists. On November 8, the organization sent its findings and a list of questions to Mali’s ministers of Justice and Defense but had not received a reply by the time of publication.
Witnesses identified the soldiers by their camouflage attire and the Dozos by their traditional clothing and the amulets they wore.
Around 10 a.m. on October 2, soldiers in at least seven pickup trucks and three armored vehicles, accompanied by Dozo militiamen on motorcycles, entered Kamona and began searching for the village’s men. According to witnesses, GSIM fighters had warned locals of the army’s approach, prompting many to flee.
“Those who were unable to escape were rounded up and executed,” a survivor told Human Rights Watch.
Witnesses asserted that GSIM combatants had already vacated the village before the army’s arrival and that no confrontation occurred between the two groups.
These killings, which have been corroborated by media reports, are believed by witnesses to be connected to recent GSIM attacks in the Ségou region, including an assault that destroyed the Siribala sugar factory on August 8.
Villagers later discovered 17 bodies under a tree within the village and another four bodies north of Kamona. They explained that soldiers had torched at least 10 huts and three sheds belonging to residents of Fulani ethnicity.
A 40-year-old shepherd, who had hidden in an abandoned house with his 9-year-old daughter, said that after the assailants left around 4 p.m., he found the 17 bodies. “The people had been riddled with bullets,” he recounted. “One of them had his head completely smashed. I also saw several bullet casings next to the bodies.”
Another man, aged 39, described helping to bury the dead. “We dug a mass grave under the tree and placed the 17 men in it,” he said. “Further north, we found four more bodies. All had been shot in the stomach and head, so we dug another pit, laid them inside, and covered them with sand.”
The villagers provided a list of the 21 victims, all men between the ages of 20 and 65. They suspect that the actual death toll from the attack is higher. “We heard that at least 15 other men were killed in the bush that day,” one villager stated. “But we didn’t go to check because we were afraid the army would return.”
On October 13, at approximately 1 p.m., Malian soldiers in five pickup trucks and Dozo militiamen on at least 30 motorcycles entered the village of Balle, causing some inhabitants to flee. “I didn’t run away immediately, but when I saw the soldiers going door-to-door, slapping and kicking the men, I fled,” said a 24-year-old man. “From my hiding place, I heard gunshots.”
Witnesses reported that the soldiers and Dozo militiamen killed 10 civilians—a 55-year-old woman and nine men aged 22 to 67—and stole at least 100 cows.
A 33-year-old man stated that after the attack, he discovered the 10 bodies in the middle of the village. “They were next to each other, riddled with bullets,” he said. “Some had broken legs and arms.”
The 21-year-old daughter of the slain woman said her mother had shouted at the soldiers, accusing them of mistreating the villagers. “She walked towards the soldiers,” she explained. “They then took her to where the men were gathered and shot her.”
In a communiqué dated October 14, the Chief of the General Staff of the Malian Armed Forces stated that on October 13, soldiers conducted an “offensive reconnaissance” operation around Balle, which “led to the neutralization of about twenty terrorists” and the seizure of military equipment.
Witnesses and residents confirmed that Balle has been under GSIM control for several years. “We pay the zakat [Islamic tax] every year,” one man said. “If there are disputes, the jihadists resolve them. There are no soldiers, gendarmes, or police here. Therefore, the army assumes we are GSIM fighters. The army does not distinguish between them and us.”
Since 2012, successive Malian governments have been engaged in armed conflicts with various Islamist armed groups. The hostilities have resulted in thousands of civilian deaths and displaced over 402,000 people. Human Rights Watch has documented severe abuses by Malian armed forces and their allied militia and mercenary groups during counter-insurgency operations, as well as atrocities by GSIM and other armed factions. This situation remains a key topic in Mali current affairs.
The military attacks on civilians in the Ségou region occurred after GSIM initiated a siege of Bamako, Mali’s capital, in early September. The siege disrupted fuel supplies to Bamako and prompted the military junta to temporarily close all schools and universities nationwide.
All parties in Mali’s armed conflict are bound by international humanitarian law, including Common Article 3 of the 1949 Geneva Conventions and customary laws of war. These laws prohibit attacks on civilians, as well as the murder, cruel treatment, and torture of anyone in custody. Individuals who commit grave violations of the laws of war with criminal intent, or who bear command responsibility, can be prosecuted for war crimes.
Although Mali withdrew from the International Criminal Court (ICC) in September, the country remains a state party to the Rome Statute until September 2026. In January 2013, the Court opened an investigation into alleged war crimes committed in Mali since 2012.
The African Union (AU) has largely failed to respond effectively to the worsening conflict in Mali, despite its mandate to promote peace and security, Human Rights Watch noted. As the security situation has deteriorated in recent months, the AU’s Peace and Security Council has done little beyond issuing statements of concern.
“The AU Peace and Security Council should make the conflict in Mali a priority,” Allegrozzi concluded. “It should hold regular briefings, step up diplomatic efforts, and coordinate regional and international action to enhance accountability for abuses by all sides.”