Terrorists Kill Dozens At Wedding Ceremony in Mali

A terrorist group reportedly attacked a wedding ceremony in Central Mali on Monday and killed at least 21 people.

The attack was said to have occurred in the village of Djiguibombo, not far from Bandiagara, a town in the country’s centre. A local official told DW on Wednesday that those killed included guests, residents and local officials.

It was reported that the assailants rode into the village on motorcycles, murdered guests and residents and looted homes. The attack reportedly started before nightfall and “lasted around three hours,” Bakary Guindo, President of the local youth group, told DW. “Most of the victims had their throats slit,” he added.

Ginna Dogon, an organisation that represents the Dogon ethnic group, disclosed that the attackers, after looting people’s houses, set fire to a health centre and stole supplies and livestock.

It is “the latest tragedy in a dark series that the Dogon county has been going through for several years, with daily attacks on villages, farmers in the fields, killings and kidnappings,” the group said.

So far, no group has claimed responsibility for the attack. However, it bears similarities to previous attacks by the al-Qaida-linked JNIM extremist group, which has targeted the region multiple times before.

In May, armed jihadists killed at least 19 civilians in a village in the Circle of Bankass in the Mopti region of central Mali.

Mali, like other countries in the Sahel region, is facing an increasing wave of violence by extremists since groups affiliated with al-Qaida and the “Islamic State” began launching attacks in 2012.

The military junta, like the democratic government it overthrew, is struggling in the fight against extremist groups. It expelled French troops from the country after cutting ties with Western powers to align with Russia.

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