Human Rights Watch (HRW) on June 27 released a report accusing Russian-controlled paramilitary forces, also known as the Africa Corps, of killing eight civilians, including three children, in an airstrike on the village of Kyrnia in Mali's Mopti region on June 15.
According to the report, an aircraft identified by two Malian military sources as a Sukhoi Su-24 dropped at least two bombs on Kyrnia during the attack. One bomb struck near the village chief's home, killing his wife, two children, and several others. The second hit a small livestock market, killing four people and wounding two others.
HRW said that at the time of the airstrike, at least 100 fighters from Jamaat Nusrat al Islam wal Muslimin (JNIM), an al-Qaeda-linked group, were present in the village. The group had controlled Kyrnia for the past six years. However, HRW stressed that no JNIM positions were hit.
HRW Sahel researcher Ilaria Allegrozzi called on Mali's military government to "objectively investigate any possible war crimes on their territory, including the airstrikes in Kyrnia, otherwise they will be considered complicit in abuses."
In a post on social media platform X on June 23, the Africa Corps said it had "conducted an airstrike on a gathering place of terrorists" and that "several field commanders were eliminated." An accompanying drone video appeared to show the moment of explosions in Kyrnia as residents were moving.
Russian paramilitary forces, formerly the Wagner mercenary group and now the Kremlin-run Africa Corps, have fought alongside Malian soldiers since 2021. The alliance faces growing allegations of violence targeting civilians.
HRW said it conducted remote interviews with 19 people, including witnesses, Malian military sources, and local journalists, and analyzed satellite imagery and geolocated videos released by the Africa Corps.
Violence by armed groups in Mali and neighboring Burkina Faso and Niger has killed thousands of civilians over the past decade. According to the United Nations, at least 2,260 people were killed from January to March alone this year. These countries have expelled France, their former backer, and turned to Russia for cooperation.
