Islamic State-linked militants have killed at least 48 civilians in eastern Mali in attacks believed to be retaliation for alleged abuses against suspected informants by pro-government forces, according to security sources and local officials cited by Reuters.
The attacks occurred over the weekend in at least five localities in the Menaka region, with the death toll still being determined as of Tuesday, October 20, 2026.
Four sources — two security officials and two local officials said the violence followed an operation involving the Malian pro-government militia known as the Movement for the Salvation of Azawad (MSA) and Russia’s Africa Corps, which supports Mali’s military government.
The sources spoke anonymously, citing fears of reprisals.
A municipal official in Menaka alleged that MSA militiamen, who accompanied Malian troops and Africa Corps personnel, committed abuses against civilians suspected of providing information to Islamic State militants.
According to the official, the alleged abuses included the killing of about a dozen people, the burning of houses and the theft of property.
During the retaliatory attacks on Sunday, fighters from Islamic State Sahel Province (ISSP) reportedly set homes on fire and stole livestock, forcing hundreds of civilians to flee to Menaka town.
The four sources gave provisional death tolls ranging from 48 to more than 70 people. Some victims reportedly died in fires, while others were shot.
ISSP has not claimed responsibility for the attacks. A Malian military spokesperson and Russia’s embassy in Bamako did not respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.
Mali has previously denied killing civilians during counterinsurgency operations.
The latest violence comes as fighting between Islamic State Sahel Province and the al-Qaeda-linked Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) intensifies across the Sahel region of West Africa.
Mali has faced an insurgency since 2012, when Tuareg separatists and al-Qaeda-linked militants expanded their operations in the country’s north, prompting French military intervention.
In April 2026, JNIM and the Tuareg-led Azawad Liberation Front carried out attacks across Mali that killed the defence minister and struck the main airport in the capital, Bamako, according to Reuters.
ISSP and JNIM have also engaged in fierce clashes in recent weeks.
Last week, ISSP claimed it had killed 400 JNIM fighters after repelling an attempted ambush in neighbouring Burkina Faso.
The claim has not been independently confirmed.
The two groups first clashed in 2019 and have since fought hundreds of battles, resulting in more than 2,000 deaths, according to conflict-monitoring organisation Armed Conflict Location & Event Data (ACLED).
The latest attacks add to the insecurity facing civilians in Mali, where violence involving armed groups and counterinsurgency forces continues to drive displacement and deepen the humanitarian crisis.
