Mali authorities say they will prosecute those behind UN report that accused military of abuses

By BABA AHMED
Associated Press

BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — Malian authorities say they intend to prosecute those behind a U.N. report that accused the military of human rights abuses. The nation’s public prosecutor Ladji Sara made the announcement, calling the people involved in the May report as “accomplices in the crimes of espionage.” The report by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights accused the Malian army and Russia’s paramilitary Wagner Group of killing at least 500 civilians during an airborne mission in Moura, located in central Mali. The announcement comes amid growing tensions over the U.N.’s presence in the West African nation. Foreign Affairs Minister Abdoulaye Diop recently made a formal request for all peacekeepers to depart the country immediately.