The US has imposed sanctions on senior politicians in Mali for supporting mercenaries from the Russian military group Wagner. The measures, such as the freezing of all assets, were taken by Defense Minister Sadio Camara, among others. Together with other officials, he was involved in supporting the mercenaries.
The US government justified the sanctions on Monday by saying that the number of civilian deaths in the West African country had risen by 278 percent since the Malian government began cooperating with Wagner. “Many fatalities were the result of operations by the Malian armed forces together with members of the Wagner group.”
A military junta under Colonel Assimi Goïta rules in Mali. The military took power in the Sahel country with around 23 million inhabitants in two coups in 2020 and 2021 and turned to Russia, which it hoped would provide more robust help against Islamists. While the military junta only speaks of trainers, it is estimated that up to 2,000 Russian Wagner mercenaries are active in the country.
Most recently, the Malian government had also demanded the withdrawal of the UN peacekeeping mission Minusma from the country. The German soldiers deployed there want to withdraw by the end of the year.