Warning: This story contains descriptions of torture and physical violence. Some readers may find it distressing.
A shopkeeper has told the BBC how Russian mercenaries fighting jihadists in Mali carried out the cold-blooded murder of two men in front of him and then threatened to chop off his fingers and kill him too.
This is one of several similar testimonies collected by the BBC showing the tactics used by the Russian fighters as they waged a brutal counter-insurgency operation against Islamist militants in the West African nation - methods widely condemned by human rights groups.
A military junta seized power in Mali in 2021, forcing French troops to leave after accusing them of failing to stem the insurgency. The junta pivoted towards Russia, enlisting the help of the Wagner mercenary group, which was at the time linked to the Kremlin.
Wagner has since pulled out of the country, and its operations have been taken over by Africa Corps, which falls under Russia's defence ministry.
Some of the Wagner mercenaries highlighted their atrocities on an invitation-only Telegram group until it was shut down in the middle of this year, said a report released by the European Council on Foreign Relations last month.
They regularly shared photos and videos of murder, rape, torture, cannibalism and desecration of corpses against alleged insurgents and civilians, the report added.
In June, the Africa Report publication said it had infiltrated the Wagner-linked Telegram channel, finding 322 videos and 647 photographs of atrocities, including severed heads and gouged-out eyes, and posts laced with racism.
The shopkeeper we spoke to has fled Mali and is now living in a refugee camp across the border in Mauritania. He told the BBC his ordeal started when the Wagner combatants drove up to the big store that he ran in the central town of Nampala in August 2024.
Despite being regular customers, the Wagner fighters wanted to detain his boss, and accused him of colluding with the jihadists who have a strong presence in the region, Ahmed said.
They took me to the vehicle and pushed me inside and tied my hands, he added. A Wagner soldier took a knife and placed it on my finger, and asked me: 'Where is the shop owner?' I told him he is in [the capital] Bamako, but he replied: 'Wrong answer'.
Ahmed said the Wagner men then took him to a military base, where they tortured him by dipping his head in water and threatened to behead him if he did not provide information about his boss. Witnessing beheadings and brutal treatment of others deeply traumatized him, further driving him to flee for his life.
This story highlights the ongoing human rights violations in Mali, exemplifying the grim realities faced by civilians caught in the conflict between mercenary groups and Islamist militants.
A shopkeeper has told the BBC how Russian mercenaries fighting jihadists in Mali carried out the cold-blooded murder of two men in front of him and then threatened to chop off his fingers and kill him too.
This is one of several similar testimonies collected by the BBC showing the tactics used by the Russian fighters as they waged a brutal counter-insurgency operation against Islamist militants in the West African nation - methods widely condemned by human rights groups.
A military junta seized power in Mali in 2021, forcing French troops to leave after accusing them of failing to stem the insurgency. The junta pivoted towards Russia, enlisting the help of the Wagner mercenary group, which was at the time linked to the Kremlin.
Wagner has since pulled out of the country, and its operations have been taken over by Africa Corps, which falls under Russia's defence ministry.
Some of the Wagner mercenaries highlighted their atrocities on an invitation-only Telegram group until it was shut down in the middle of this year, said a report released by the European Council on Foreign Relations last month.
They regularly shared photos and videos of murder, rape, torture, cannibalism and desecration of corpses against alleged insurgents and civilians, the report added.
In June, the Africa Report publication said it had infiltrated the Wagner-linked Telegram channel, finding 322 videos and 647 photographs of atrocities, including severed heads and gouged-out eyes, and posts laced with racism.
The shopkeeper we spoke to has fled Mali and is now living in a refugee camp across the border in Mauritania. He told the BBC his ordeal started when the Wagner combatants drove up to the big store that he ran in the central town of Nampala in August 2024.
Despite being regular customers, the Wagner fighters wanted to detain his boss, and accused him of colluding with the jihadists who have a strong presence in the region, Ahmed said.
They took me to the vehicle and pushed me inside and tied my hands, he added. A Wagner soldier took a knife and placed it on my finger, and asked me: 'Where is the shop owner?' I told him he is in [the capital] Bamako, but he replied: 'Wrong answer'.
Ahmed said the Wagner men then took him to a military base, where they tortured him by dipping his head in water and threatened to behead him if he did not provide information about his boss. Witnessing beheadings and brutal treatment of others deeply traumatized him, further driving him to flee for his life.
This story highlights the ongoing human rights violations in Mali, exemplifying the grim realities faced by civilians caught in the conflict between mercenary groups and Islamist militants.
