Mali jihadists, army commit abuses: HRW

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BAMAKO, Feb 20, (AFP): Malian jihadists and security forces alike have committed appalling abuses against civilians in the last year, rights groups said Friday, as Islamist groups make new inroads into the west African country. Reports by Human Rights Watch (HRW) and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) document jihadists murdering, raping and assaulting Malian citizens, while soldiers were accused of torture and arbitrary detention.

The encroachment of armed groups beyond the country’s troubled north and into the centre and south of the country along its borders with Mauritania and Burkina Faso was also raised as a new area of concern in the HRW report. “The French-led military intervention in 2013, continuing operations to drive out the Islamist forces, and the June 2015 peace agreement between the government and several armed groups resulted in some stability in the north,” the HRW report said. “At the same time, Islamist armed groups have carried out operations deeper in Mali’s south.” Malian, French and UN forces are attempting to maintain order over vast stretches of desert where extremist groups roam after being ousted from key northern towns in 2013.

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