BAMAKO, Mali — Mali’s armed forces said on Saturday they had found 54 civilian bodies at a camp in Tagadayat, about 35 kilometres southeast of Ménaka in the northeast, after attacks on camps last weekend, AFP and Xinhua reported.
The new figure raises the toll by six from the “at least 48” previously reported. A joint patrol “discovered fifty-four (54) lifeless bodies in a camp in Tagadayat,” the military said, as quoted by Xinhua.
The camps mainly housed members of the Daoussahak community, from which the junta-aligned MSA armed group draws its members. Nine survivors were evacuated and the victims were buried on site, the army said.
The attack has been attributed to the Islamic State Sahel group. A security source in Gao told AFP it was retaliation for military operations and attacks by the MSA.
Sources: The Hindu (AFP), Xinhua
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