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Russia’s Wagner Mercenaries Tortured Civilians in Secret Mali Prisons, Investigation Finds
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![Photo of Dariia Mykhailenko]( "Photo of Dariia Mykhailenko")
Since 2021, Russian Wagner Group mercenaries have been implicated in the detention, torture, and forced disappearance of hundreds of civilians in Mali, according to a joint investigation released by Forbidden Stories, France 24, Le Monde, and IStorieson on June 12.
The investigation was conducted under the Viktoriia project, honoring Ukrainian journalist Viktoriia Roshchyna, who was abducted by Russian forces in 2023 while reporting on civilian detentions in occupied Ukraine. She was killed in captivity in 2024.
The findings reveal that Wagner fighters, operating alongside Malian government forces, systematically abducted civilians and held them in secret detention centers at former UN and military bases across the country. Eyewitness accounts and satellite imagery helped identify at least six such locations used by Wagner between 2022 and 2024. Investigators believe the true number of detention sites may be significantly higher.
“Civilians have been deliberately targeted since Wagner’s arrival,” explained Yvan Guichaoua, a researcher at the Bonn International Centre for Conflict Studies “Security forces tend to view populations living in jihadist-influenced areas as collaborators.”
Detainees reportedly endured routine torture — including beatings, waterboarding, electric shocks, starvation, and confinement in overheated metal containers.
Attaye Ag Mohamed Aboubacrine, Deputy Secretary General of the Kal Akal human rights group, stated that most people die while in detention, which is why the mere mention of Wagner’s name instills fear among the local population.
Boubacar Ould Hamadi, President of the Collective for the Defense of the Rights of the Azawad People, added that the disappearances and abuses committed by Malian Armed Forces and Wagner — with Russia’s backing and coordination — appear to be part of a calculated strategy to spread terror and drive communities into exile. His organization documented 304 abductions or disappearances between October 2024 and March 2025.
According to investigation, Wagner mercenaries, known for their role in Russia’s war against Ukraine and the failed mutiny against the Kremlin in 2023, maintain a wide presence across Africa, where they support pro-Kremlin regimes and Russian commercial interests.
In Mali, Wagner has operated since late 2021 and faces repeated allegations of war crimes. In December 2024, Human Rights Watch accused the group, alongside Malian forces, of executing 32 civilians.
Wagner recently announced its withdrawal from Mali, ending years of joint operations with local forces against Islamist insurgents.
Earlier, the Wagner Group had formally declared the end of its mission in Mali, announcing the withdrawal of its personnel to Russia after more than three and a half years of operations in the West African nation.
In a statement shared via the Telegram channel Razgruzka Vagnera, which is affiliated with the mercenary group, Wagner claimed that its mission had been completed following the alleged return of all regional capitals to the control of Mali’s “legitimate government.”
