The number of people killed in Mali increased in 2022 by 54% compared to 2021 and 35% of human rights violations are attributed to the defense and security forces, according to a United Nations report consulted on Wednesday by AFP. .

“Compared to the previous year, the number of people killed (1,277 in 2022) recorded a 54% increase from 2021 (584 deaths), the UN Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) said in its quarterly report on violations of of human rights, covering the period from October to December 2022.

“Overall, 2,001 people were affected by violent acts in 2022 (1,277 murdered, 372 abducted/disappeared and 352 injured),” the text states.

Jihadi organizations were responsible for most of the violent acts, accounting for 56% of the violations recorded, according to the same source.

After two consecutive coups (2020, 2021), the military in power in Mali expelled in 2022 France, a traditional ally of the African country, and turned to Russia, which sent “trainers” according to the junta, Wagner’s mercenaries involved in many atrocities according to the UN, Western governments and NGOs.

As far as the military and security forces are concerned, a total of “694 human rights violations, or 35% of the total number of violations,” are attributed to “their elements,” in “some” cases “accompanied by foreign military personnel.” , according to MINUSMA.

However, these figures do not include violations committed in Moura from March 27 to 31, 2022, when Malian armed forces, allegedly accompanied by Wagner mercenaries, executed hundreds of people, according to UN experts.

Tensions with MINUSMA’s human rights arm have skyrocketed since the military took power two years ago.

The junta of colonels has been overtly blocking MINUSMA’s investigations into human rights and abuses increasingly blamed on units of the defense and security forces. In February, the head of that UN mission was expelled by authorities in Bamako.

Mali remains caught in the grip of a multidimensional crisis, not only security, but also political, economic and humanitarian. A local uprising in the north in 2012 turned into a jihadist guerilla war.

Organizations pledging allegiance to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State, as well as paramilitary groups and criminal gangs, are ravaging the country. Violence spread from the north to the central and eastern parts of the country and to neighboring states, Burkina Faso and Niger. It is now sweeping western sectors, while spreading southwards, troubling Mali’s other neighbours, especially Senegal.

Thousands of civilians, police and military have been killed and more than two million people have been forced from their homes across the region.

MINUSMA was formed in 2013 to help stabilize the Sahel state that was threatened with collapse due to expanding jihadist activity, to protect civilians, contribute to the restoration of peace, defend human rights…