Civil rights groups have accused the Malian government of being responsible for human rights abuses carried out by Russian mercenaries operating in the country.

Mali is being accused of serious human rights violations involving its national armed forces and fighters from the Russian mercenary group Wagner.

Civil society organizations have filed a case against Mali at the African Union’s human rights court, accusing the authorities of being responsible for serious abuses linked to the Wagner Group and of failing to investigate or punish those responsible.The case was submitted on Monday.

The case was filed by three prominent civil society organizations: TRIAL International, the Pan African Lawyers Union (PALU), and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH).

A coalition of civil society groups has filed a case at the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACtHPR) over serious human rights violations allegedly committed against civilians in Mali in 2022.The groups accused the Malian authorities and fighters linked to the Wagner Group (now rebranded as the Africa Corps) of committing the abuses.

In 2021, after breaking ties with its former colonial ruler France, Mali’s junta turned to Russia and the Wagner Group for support in fighting jihadist militants and Tuareg separatists.

While Wagner forces assisted the army in recapturing several key strongholds in the north, they did little to improve the overall security situation. Russian troops have been accused of committing numerous abuses against civilians.

United Nations investigators have concluded that Malian troops, alongside foreign fighters believed to be from the Wagner Group, were responsible for the massacre of at least 500 people in the town of Moura, Mali, in March 2022.