A recent Human Rights Watch report accuses the JNIM jihadist alliance, Tuareg rebel factions (FLA), Malian armed forces, and Russian-backed Africa Corps of perpetrating systematic abuses against civilians following coordinated offensives in late April. The escalation has left at least 13 civilians dead and 25 injured in Gao and Kidal regions alone.

A 38-year-old resident of Kidal shared harrowing details of the violence: “I was struck by bullets in my right shoulder and left thigh during crossfire, though I couldn’t determine the source of the shots—gunfire erupted from all directions.”

Documented atrocities and destruction

HRW’s investigation reveals multiple incidents where armed groups targeted unarmed populations. Between May 6–21, militants set ablaze over 40 civilian vehicles on roads leading to Bamako and executed a man publicly in Tonka. “We recovered his body with a gunshot wound to the head,” recounted a local witness. The report also implicates state forces, citing drone strikes in Guimbé and Tené that killed 38 civilians, including 23 children. Survivors described hearing “a sound from the sky, followed by an explosion,” before discovering “massive destruction with multiple casualties.”

To substantiate claims, HRW conducted 34 remote interviews, analyzed satellite imagery, videos, and photographs. Authorities in Bamako did not respond to requests for comment. Meanwhile, the JNIM asserted that “no war is without human cost,” while the FLA maintained it had taken precautions to “minimize civilian harm.”