The briefing ‘They
Executed Some and Brought the Rest with Them: Civilian Lives at risk in the
Sahel’ calls on the governments of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger to put an end
to the impunity around the regular violations committed by their security
forces against unarmed populations, and to ensure that military operations are
in conformity with human rights and international humanitarian law. In Mali and
Burkina Faso where the situation amounts to a non-international armed conflict,
the deliberate killings of unarmed civilians by security forces could meet the
qualification of war crimes.
“Insecurity is rife
in the Sahel where the general population is trapped between attacks by armed
groups and ongoing military operations. While arbitrary arrests by security
forces sweep up dozens of people at a time, some aren’t seen again, and the
true scale of the violations committed by the armies is unknown,” said Samira
Daoud, Amnesty International West and Central Africa Director.
“So far pledges by
the governments of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger to address these violations
have rung hollow. The authorities in these countries must urgently and
rigorously investigate these incidents, many of which could amount to war
crimes, and ensure the general population is protected during military
operations against armed groups.”
The briefing
highlights violations committed during the military response to the insecurity
in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, as the three countries confront the threat
posed by armed groups such as the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims
(GSIM) and the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (ISGS). The violations
occurred in the wake of the 13 January 2020 Pau summit in France reuniting the
G5 Sahel of which the three countries are members and France, in which they
recommitted to their partnership in addressing insecurity in the Sahel.
Villagers arrested
and unlawfully executed in Mali
In Mali, the
military launched sweeping operations in the communes of Diabaly, and Dogofry
in the region of Segou leading to several human rights violations following
attacks against security forces by the armed groups.
Amnesty
International was able to corroborate that at least 23 people were either
extrajudicially executed or otherwise unlawfully killed and 27 others were
arrested and then forcibly disappeared by the Malian army in the communes of
Diabaly and Dogofry between 3 February and 11 March 2020.
On 16 February in
Belidanedji, security forces extrajudicially executed five individuals, who
were later buried by the villagers, and arrested 18 other ones who have been
unaccounted since then.
One relative of the
victims told Amnesty International:
“When the soldiers
arrived in the village, most people fled to escape from their fury. But they
arrested several villagers and executed four of my relatives. Afterwards, they
seized some of the fertilizers, the supplies and many other wares in the market”.
Extrajudicial
executions in Burkina Faso
Amnesty
International also documented gross human rights violations committed by the
security forces of Burkina Faso between March and April 2020. In at least two
instances, security forces forcibly disappeared individuals, including IDPs,
before killing them.
On 29 March, Issouf
Barry, local councillor in Sollé, Hamidou Barry, the village chief of Sollé,
and Oumarou Barry, a member of the princely family of Banh were abducted in
their homes in Ouahigouya.
According to a
relative of one of the victims, the three individuals were arrested in their
homes by gendarmes. All three of them were IDPs who had relocated to
Ouahigouya, the regional capital, from their original settlements, due to the
insecurity. Their dead bodies were found by villagers on 2 April, at the
outskirts of the city, on the road leading to Oula.
In another incident
documented by Amnesty International, 31 residents of Djibo, including 10 IDPs,
were arrested and executed on 9 April by the Groupement des Forces
Anti-Terroristes (GFAT). On 20 April 2020, the government acknowledged that
extrajudicial killings had taken place. In a statement, it said the Direction
de la Justice Militaire had been mandated to investigate these allegations
since 10 April 2019.
More than 10O
villagers forcibly disappeared in Niger
In Niger, 102 people
from the south-west region of Tillabéry were arrested and forcibly disappeared
by the army as part of operation Almahou between 27 March and 2 April 2020.
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Witnesses told
Amnesty International that 48 people were arrested on their way to and from a
market fair in Ayorou between 27 and 29 March 2020 by Nigerien soldiers. The 54
others were arrested by security forces in several villages on 2 April.
Five witnesses
interviewed by Amnesty International stressed that all these individuals have
been unaccounted for and that many mass graves were found in several places in
the department of Ayorou. Many of the locals feared for their fates if they
were to venture near the mass graves or inquire about the forcibly disappeared.
The military
crackdown has forced people to flee to urban areas for safety.
“Inates has been
deserted by its residents and most of them have moved south, closer to the
urban centers due to the insecurity”, a witness told Amnesty International.
“The authorities in
Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso must ensure the cessation of the unlawful killings
and enforced disappearances committed by their security forces. They must
immediately ensure the release of all arrested and abducted persons unless they
are brought before a court and charged with a recognizable criminal offence.
They must investigate these incidents and prosecute those found responsible for
the violations. Impunity has only led to further violations and abuses,” said
Samira Daoud
“It is important for
regional actors and international partners to take a firm stand against these
violations and exhort the authorities of the three countries to ensure that all
measures are taken before, during and after operations to prevent civilian harm
and further abuses.”
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