Arya News - Russian soldiers are raping and beheading civilians and gouging out their organs in a supposed fight against extremism in Mali.
Russian soldiers are raping and beheading civilians and gouging out their organs in a supposed fight against extremism in Mali.
Moscow’s Africa Corps appears to have taken over from the disbanded Wagner Group mercenary organisation , which was also accused of war crimes in Africa.
Witnesses say the unit has shot civilians on sight and harvested their organs, an investigation by the Associated Press has found.
“It’s a scorched earth policy,” a Malian village chief who fled said of the Russian forces. “The soldiers speak to no one. Anyone they see, they shoot. No questions, no warning. People don’t even know why they are being killed.”
A group of Russian soldiers and Malian soldiers in a village in north-eastern Mali last year - Coordination of Azawad Movements/via Reuters
West Africa’s Sahel has become the world’s deadliest hotspot for extremist violence, with thousands of people killed in recent years.
The military rulers of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger have abandoned Western partners and turned to Russia for help against al-Qaeda and Islamic State-linked fighters.
Two refugees showed videos of burned villages to the Associated Press. Two others said they found their loved ones’ bodies with their liver and kidneys missing.
A Malian refugee shows photographs of the village she says was destroyed by Russian troops - Caitlin Kelly/AP Photo
“ Only the name was changed [from Wagner to Africa Corps],” one local told AP. “The clothes, the vehicles, the people stayed the same. The methods stayed the same, and even became worse.”
Russia’s foreign ministry confirmed the Africa Corps was operating in Mali “at the request of the Malian authorities”. Malian officials have not publicly acknowledged the Russian presence.
The Telegraph reported last month that Russia has become Mali’s main security partner in the fight against al-Qaeda for control of the west African nation.
The Africa Corps formed after Yevgeny Prigozhin, the Wagner founder , died in a suspicious plane crash in 2023 following his armed rebellion against Vladimir Putin. Analysts estimate 2,000 of its fighters operate in Mali.
Son killed and daughter abducted
One refugee, Mougaloa, said masked “white men” killed her 20-year-old son three months ago after Malian soldiers questioned him about militants.
In October, the men returned and abducted her daughter Fatma. The family has not heard from her.
“We were so scared,” the woman said. “We are hoping she will get here at some point.”
She added that the men repeatedly used the word “pes,” a Russian slang term for dog.
A four-year-old girl is treated by Mauritanian health workers for wounds she suffered in a drone strike in Mali - Caitlin Kelly/AP Photo
Refugees from Mali in a Mauritanian camp - Caitlin Kelly/AP Photo
Another woman, Fatma, said forces looted her village of Kurmare last month, killing men and taking jewellery.
She found her son shot dead at his shop, and her daughter died from seizures while fleeing to Mauritania.
Civilian deaths blamed on Russians dropped to 447 this year from 911 last year, according to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project. But Heni Nsaibia, an analyst, said actual numbers may be higher because “people are more scared to report.”
A UN peacekeeping mission withdrew from Mali in 2023, and the country left the International Criminal Court this year.
Eduardo Gonzalez Cueva, a UN independent expert, said Mali’s junta, which took power in a 2021 coup, ignored his visit requests and questionnaires this year.
Try full access to The Telegraph free today. Unlock their award-winning website and essential news app, plus useful tools and expert guides for your money, health and holidays.