32 Fulani villagers killed in Mali ethnic violence
Dozens of Fulani civilians have been killed as suspected traditional hunters attacked a village in the lawless region of central Mali, which is rife with ethic violence and militancy.
Local officials said Sunday that armed Dozo hunters, linked to the Dogon ethnic group, were suspected of ambushing the isolated village of Koumaga in the Mopti region a day earlier.
They said 16 bodies had so far been found, while 10 civilians remain missing.
The assailants “surrounded the village, separated the Fulani people from the others and killed at least 32 civilians in cold blood,” said Abdoul Aziz Diallo, president of the local Tabital Pulaaku association.
He said the attackers had returned to the same village on Sunday night as the army left, launching a fresh assault that claimed the lives of four more people.
A statement by the government said “a violent clash” took place between communities in the Mopti region despite army patrols.
Central Mali, a vast area where the state is nearly absent, has seen a rise in violence over the past years between Fulani herders and Bambara and Dogon farmers, sparked by disputes over access to land and water.
Both hunters and farmers accuse the pastoralists of colluding with the al-Qaeda-linked terrorists also operating in the region since 2012.
The armed forces are facing increasing accusations of arbitrary arrests and extra-judicial killings in their fight against the militants.
The violence comes despite the presence of thousands of UN peacekeepers and French forces in the African country.
South Africa to file detailed dossier with top UN court on Israeli genocide
Putin: BRICS, not the West, will drive global economic prosperity
Pentagon says completed US military withdrawal from Niger
VIDEO | Press TV's news headlines
Iranian satellites launched into space as private sector debuts in space industry
VIDEO | Iran, Azerbaijan conduct joint maritime rescue operations
VIDEO | Yemen’s Red Sea divide: Naval forces block Israeli-linked ships in strategic ‘parting of the water’
VIDEO | Southern Gaza: Israel’s facade for famine and suffering
VIDEO | IOF hampering humanitarian aid
VIDEO | Sharmahd: Justice Done
Iran repeatedly warned Israel not to test its will: FM
PressTV NEWSLETTER
now
This makes it easy to access the Press TV website
