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Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Russia's Wagner Group abused civilians in secret prisons in Mali, investigation finds
Since 2021, Russian Wagner mercenaries have detained, tortured, and forcibly disappeared hundreds of civilians in secret prisons across Mali, according to a joint investigation published on June 12 by Forbidden Stories, France 24, Le Monde, and IStories. The investigation found that mercenaries with Russia's Wagner Group, working alongside Malian government forces, had systematically abducted and detained civilians, holding them in prisons at former United Nations bases and military bases across Mali. Drawing on eyewitness accounts and satellite imagery, the investigation identified six detention centers where Wagner held civilians between 2022 and 2024. The total number of Wagner detention centers in Mali is likely to be much higher. Prisoners were subjected to systematic torture – including beatings, waterboarding, electric shocks, starvation, and confinement in sweltering metal containers. The investigation was carried out as part of the Viktoriia project, in memory of Ukrainian journalist Viktoriia Roshchyna, who was captured by Russian forces in 2023 while investigating the illegal detention of civilians in Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine. She was killed in Russian captivity in 2024. The Russian mercenary group, known for its deployment in Ukraine and short-lived rebellion against the Kremlin in 2023, has a strong presence across the African continent, backing Russian business interests and Moscow-friendly regimes. The mercenaries have been particularly active in Mali since late 2021 and have been accused of perpetrating war crimes. In December 2024, Human Rights Watch accused Wagner mercenaries and Malian government forces of deliberately killing 32 civilians. The Wagner Group recently announced its withdrawal from Mali, where it fought alongside Malian government forces to fend off Islamist insurgents. Wagner has been active across the African continent for years and has been previously accused of committing human rights abuses. Read also: Ukraine war latest: Ukraine strikes targets in Russia, including gunpowder plant We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
LeMonde
12-06-2025
- Politics
- LeMonde
style https://assets-decodeurs.lemonde.fr/redacweb/lm-styles/lm-styles.v2.0.0.css source https://assets-decodeurs.lemonde.fr/doc_happens/2506-mali/texts-en.txt source https://assets-decodeurs.lemonde.fr/doc_happens/2506-mali/structure.txt source https://assets-decodeurs.lemonde.fr/doc_happens/2506-mali/styles.txt Africa Mali Russian Wagner group fighters secretly detained and tortured civilians in Mali By Thomas Eydoux and Benjamin Roger Published today at 6:30 pm (Paris), updated at 6:39 pm 7 min read Lire en français Subscribers only Share Share on Messenger Share on Facebook Share by email Share on Linkedin Copy link Investigation Le Monde, Forbidden Stories and media partners investigated arbitrary arrests of Malians committed by Russian mercenaries. We reveal at least six bases where civilians were illegally detained and secretly tortured."Thank God for survival." When Nawma shared what he had been through, he would often thank the heavens for sparing his life, unlike the five men who were slaughtered before his eyes by mercenaries from the Russian Wagner group, on July 31, 2024. That day, these fighters, deployed by the Malian army as auxiliaries, made another sweep through his village, Toulé, in central Mali. They were searching for jihadists, or people suspected of collaborating with them. Nawma, an imposing grocer in his fifties, a member of the Fulani ethnic group and a father of eight, had sworn that he had no connections to them. Nevertheless, he was arrested in his small shop, and taken to the mercenaries' camp near the town of Nampala, located about 15 kilometers away. Once there, he was led to a concrete building where other prisoners were being held. He was stripped naked and detained in a shower stall, and repeatedly taken out for interrogation and torture. His captors would stuff a cloth in his mouth and soak it with water until he lost consciousness. They would place a chair on his body as he lay on the ground and sit on it. They burned the skin on his hip with a lighter."They also beat me on the head until I passed out. I lost a lot of blood," he said, pointing to a scar on his forehead. After four days, he was finally released, with no further explanation, and was left deeply scarred by what he had endured. You have 86.27% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.
Africa Mali Russian Wagner group fighters secretly detained and tortured civilians in Mali By Thomas Eydoux and Benjamin Roger Published today at 6:30 pm (Paris), updated at 6:39 pm 7 min read Lire en français Subscribers only InvestigationLe Monde, Forbidden Stories and media partners investigated arbitrary arrests of Malians committed by Russian mercenaries. We reveal at least six bases where civilians were illegally detained and secretly tortured. "Thank God for survival." When Nawma shared what he had been through, he would often thank the heavens for sparing his life, unlike the five men who were slaughtered before his eyes by mercenaries from the Russian Wagner group, on July 31, 2024. That day, these fighters, deployed by the Malian army as auxiliaries, made another sweep through his village, Toulé, in central Mali. They were searching for jihadists, or people suspected of collaborating with them. Nawma, an imposing grocer in his fifties, a member of the Fulani ethnic group and a father of eight, had sworn that he had no connections to them. Nevertheless, he was arrested in his small shop, and taken to the mercenaries' camp near the town of Nampala, located about 15 kilometers away. Once there, he was led to a concrete building where other prisoners were being held. He was stripped naked and detained in a shower stall, and repeatedly taken out for interrogation and torture. His captors would stuff a cloth in his mouth and soak it with water until he lost consciousness. They would place a chair on his body as he lay on the ground and sit on it. They burned the skin on his hip with a lighter. "They also beat me on the head until I passed out. I lost a lot of blood," he said, pointing to a scar on his forehead. After four days, he was finally released, with no further explanation, and was left deeply scarred by what he had endured. You have 86.27% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Hundreds of civilians were tortured by Wagner mercenaries in Mali: report
In its more than three years in Mali, the Russian paramilitary group Wagner kidnapped, detained and tortured hundreds of civilians, including at former UN bases and camps shared with the country's army, according to a report published Thursday by a journalist collective. The victims, who were interviewed by a consortium of reporters led by investigative outlet Forbidden Stories, spoke from a refugee camp in neighbouring Mauritania about waterboarding, beatings with electrical cables and being burned with cigarette butts. The investigation revealed that the use of illegal detentions and systematic torture, which sometimes led to death, was similar to that which occurred in Ukraine and Russia. The investigation, which was conducted in conjunction with France 24, Le Monde and IStories, identified six detention sites where the Russian paramilitary group held civilians between 2022 and 2024, but the actual number could be much higher, it said. Mali's ruling junta, which seized power in coups in 2020 and 2021, broke off ties with former colonial power France and pivoted towards Russia for political and military support after coming to power. The country never officially admitted Wagner's presence, insisting it only worked with Russian instructors. Nonetheless, last week a Telegram channel affiliated with Wagner announced that the Russian paramilitary group was leaving Mali. Its personnel will be reintegrated into its successor, Africa Corps, another paramilitary group with links to the Kremlin, according to diplomatic and security sources who spoke with AFP. For more than three years, Mali had relied on Wagner in its fight against jihadists who have killed thousands across the country. The paramilitary group's brutal methods on the ground in Mali have been regularly denounced by human rights groups. A UN report accused Mali's army and foreign fighters of executing at least 500 people during a March 2022 anti-jihadist sweep in Moura -- a claim denied by the junta. Western governments believe the foreign fighters were Wagner mercenaries. Last April, bodies were discovered near a Malian military camp, days after the army and Wagner paramilitaries arrested dozens of civilians, most from the Fulani community. els/bfm/cw
France 24
12-06-2025
- Politics
- France 24
Hundreds of civilians were tortured by Wagner mercenaries in Mali: report
The victims, who were interviewed by a consortium of reporters led by investigative outlet Forbidden Stories, spoke from a refugee camp in neighbouring Mauritania about waterboarding, beatings with electrical cables and being burned with cigarette butts. The investigation revealed that the use of illegal detentions and systematic torture, which sometimes led to death, was similar to that which occurred in Ukraine and Russia. The investigation, which was conducted in conjunction with France 24, Le Monde and IStories, identified six detention sites where the Russian paramilitary group held civilians between 2022 and 2024, but the actual number could be much higher, it said. Mali's ruling junta, which seized power in coups in 2020 and 2021, broke off ties with former colonial power France and pivoted towards Russia for political and military support after coming to power. The country never officially admitted Wagner's presence, insisting it only worked with Russian instructors. Nonetheless, last week a Telegram channel affiliated with Wagner announced that the Russian paramilitary group was leaving Mali. Its personnel will be reintegrated into its successor, Africa Corps, another paramilitary group with links to the Kremlin, according to diplomatic and security sources who spoke with AFP. For more than three years, Mali had relied on Wagner in its fight against jihadists who have killed thousands across the country. The paramilitary group's brutal methods on the ground in Mali have been regularly denounced by human rights groups. A UN report accused Mali's army and foreign fighters of executing at least 500 people during a March 2022 anti-jihadist sweep in Moura -- a claim denied by the junta. Western governments believe the foreign fighters were Wagner mercenaries. Last April, bodies were discovered near a Malian military camp, days after the army and Wagner paramilitaries arrested dozens of civilians, most from the Fulani community.
Al Arabiya
12-06-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
Hundreds of civilians tortured by Wagner mercenaries in Mali: Report
In its more than three years in Mali, the Russian paramilitary group Wagner kidnapped, detained and tortured hundreds of civilians, including at former UN bases and camps shared with the country's army, according to a report published Thursday by a journalist collective. The victims, who were interviewed by a consortium of reporters led by investigative outlet Forbidden Stories, spoke from a refugee camp in neighboring Mauritania about waterboarding, beatings with electrical cables and being burned with cigarette butts. The investigation revealed that the use of illegal detentions and systematic torture, which sometimes led to death, was similar to that which occurred in Ukraine and Russia. The investigation, which was conducted in conjunction with France 24, Le Monde and IStories, identified six detention sites where the Russian paramilitary group held civilians between 2022 and 2024, but the actual number could be much higher, it said. Mali's ruling junta, which seized power in coups in 2020 and 2021, broke off ties with former colonial power France and pivoted towards Russia for political and military support after coming to power. The country never officially admitted Wagner's presence, insisting it only worked with Russian instructors. Nonetheless, last week a Telegram channel affiliated with Wagner announced that the Russian paramilitary group was leaving Mali. Its personnel will be reintegrated into its successor, Africa Corps, another paramilitary group with links to the Kremlin, according to diplomatic and security sources who spoke with AFP. For more than three years, Mali had relied on Wagner in its fight against extremists who have killed thousands across the country. The paramilitary group's brutal methods on the ground in Mali have been regularly denounced by human rights groups. A UN report accused Mali's army and foreign fighters of executing at least 500 people during a March 2022 anti-extremist sweep in Moura -- a claim denied by the junta. Western governments believe the foreign fighters were Wagner mercenaries. Last April, bodies were discovered near a Malian military camp, days after the army and Wagner paramilitaries arrested dozens of civilians, most from the Fulani community.
