DAKAR, July 29 (Reuters) – Amnesty International called on Wednesday for a war crimes investigation into what it described as summary killings of at least 19 Malian soldiers by members of armed groups after an ambush on July 18.

• The attack occurred in northern Mali between the town of Anefis and the city of Gao, according to statements from Mali’s armed forces, the Azawad Liberation ​Front (FLA), and the al Qaeda-linked group Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal Muslimin (JNIM).

• Amnesty said it analysed 12 videos of the incident which were shared on X accounts and on a Telegram channel associated with the Russian paramilitary Wagner.

• “It is clear that the soldiers were hors de combat before being subjected to ill-treatment and killed in execution style,” said Ousmane Diallo, Amnesty’s senior researcher on the Sahel.

• The U.N. human rights office has also called for an investigation into the incident, saying it could amount to a war crime.

• On Friday, Mali’s military released a statement appearing to play down the incident.

• It said, “content recently circulated on social media purports to show the summary execution of Malian soldiers … These images aim to frame this incident as a supposed military victory … Such a portrayal stands in stark contradiction to the reality of the operations.”

• It added, however, that “the execution of individuals who have been captured or rendered hors de combat constitutes a serious violation of international humanitarian law and may be classified as a war crime.” Hors de combat refers to a person protected from attack under international humanitarian law for reasons such as being wounded or having laid down their arms.

• The July 18 ambush marked the latest in a series of escalating assaults in Mali by the FLA and JNIM, which joined forces for nationwide attacks in April that ​killed the defence minister and hit the country’s main airport, and launched a second wave this month aimed at ​seizing the town of Anefis.

• Mali’s armed forces have so far retained control of Anefis.

• The mounting violence poses a threat ⁠to ​Mali’s military-led government which took power in ​coups in 2020 and 2021 and promised to improve security in the landlocked ​country.

(Reporting by Portia Crowe; Editing by Rod Nickel)


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