- At least 134 people have been killed in the latest outbreak of violence in the embattled Sahel region of Mali.
- The United Nations has condemned the killings and urged the Malian government to find the perpetrators and bring them to justice.
- Mali's President has reportedly fired two generals and disbanded a vigilante group suspected of being involved in the latest attack.
Over 100 ethnic Fuhani herders, some of whom were men and children, were massacred in a village in Mali on Saturday, the United Nations has confirmed.
Footage thought to be from the village of Ogossogou emerged online on Sunday showing charred bodies and destroyed homes of the semi-nomadic ethnic group.
"The Secretary-General is shocked and outraged by reports that at least 134 civilians, including women and children, have been killed," Farhan Haq, a spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said in a statement.
He added that the UN chief is also calling on Malian authorities "to swiftly investigate it and bring the perpetrators to justice".
Mali's President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita has fired two generals and disbanded an anti-Jihadi group in response, Reuters reported. Army chief of staff General M'Bemba Moussa Keita was replaced by General Abdoulaye Coulibaly, while chief of land forces General Abdrahamane Baby was removed and Brigadier-General Keba Sangare has been named as his replacement.
The Malian government has disbanded an anti-Jihadi vigilante group called Dan Na Amassagou, Reuters reported, and some of the group's ethnic Dogon fighters are suspected of carrying out the latest killings.
Despite a presence of a at least 4,000 French troops in the troubled Sahel region, locals have seen an increase in fighting between Jihadi-affiliated vigilante groups and ethnic rivals.
Last Friday, up to 23 soldiers were killed in an attack claimed by Jihadi-affiliates, according to Reuters. This came on the back of a series of reprisal attacks in 2019.