An international human rights organization claimed that 19 civilians were killed when French troops bombarded the wedding ceremony in Mali, West Africa, which was mistaken for a terrorist group meeting.
Last week, the US international human rights group Human Rights Watch announced on the 3rd that it was necessary to quickly and fairly investigate the air raids that took place in the central Mali state.
On the 7th, the French military announced in a statement that it had eliminated about 30 members of the terrorist gang by dropping three bombs with fighters in an area where 40 armed terrorists in Mali were gathered.
However, Human Light Watch argued, “As a result of a local investigation with a civil society, the group that the French army attacked because it was mistaken for a terrorist was a civilian wedding guest, and all 19 people killed in the attack that day were civilians.
The French counter-terrorism unit operating in Mali said, “We confirmed that we had air raids in the area, but there were no weddings on that day,” and “we certainly targeted a group of armed Islamic groups.”
French Army Minister Florence Parley also insisted in an interview that “after observing the rally with a drone, I personally confirmed that there were no women and children, and this is sufficient evidence to confirm that the scene is not a wedding but a meeting of an armed Islamic group.” did.
However, local residents said the wedding was held with separate men and women due to the Islamic extremist policy active there. One resident said, “The wedding was planned for a month, and guests came from other villages. A sheep was slaughtered that day, and when the attack occurred, the women were preparing meals.”
A 68-year-old man, who claimed to have been injured in a terrorist attack, said, “Suddenly there was a jet noise and a powerful explosion. When I woke up from unconsciousness, fragments were lodged, bleeding from my feet, and there were bodies around me.”
The air raids occurred on December 29 last year and January 2 this year after five French soldiers who were engaged in reconnaissance and intelligence gathering were killed by bombs. Accordingly, some have raised the possibility that the French military attacked without close scrutiny for rapid retaliation.
In response to such an international human rights group’s argument, the French military refused to explain and answered, “Please refer to the press release released on the 7th.”
The’Sahel Zone’ in the sub-Saharan region, including Mali, has been a stronghold for Islamic extremist terrorist organizations for many years. As a result, France has dispatched about 5,000 troops to the Sahel area to repel terrorist organizations.
YTN PLUS Reporter Jeong Yoon-joo
([email protected])
[저작권자(c) YTN & YTN plus 무단전재 및 재배포 금지]
– .
