Mali launches probe into mass grave near former French base

By James Tasamba

KIGALI, Rwanda (AA) - Mali’s public prosecutor on Tuesday announced the launch of an investigation into a mass grave discovered near the camp formerly occupied by French forces in Gossi, north of the West African country.

Last Friday, the Malian army claimed to have discovered a mass grave near a military base exited by the French army in the Gossi town.

“The public prosecutor in Bamako informs the public that on the instruction of the defense and veterans minister, launched an investigation following the discovery of a mass grave in Gossi, circle of Gourma Rharous in the region of Timbuktu,” said a statement by public prosecutor, Soumaila Bagayoko.

The prosecutor together with a forensic doctor and a team of investigators visited Gossi on Saturday with the aim of shedding light on the mass grave, according to the statement.

The initial investigation will form a preliminary report and the public will be kept informed of the progress, and its final result will be made public, it added.

The Malian army announced the discovery of a mass grave hours after the French military accused Russian mercenaries of the Wagner group in Mali of “manipulating information.”

The French army claimed it had “filmed Russian mercenaries burying bodies near the Gossi base, with the intention of implicating the French as having left a mass grave behind.”

The French military operation ended in February after France's ties with its former colony deteriorated.

It had sent troops to the West African country in 2013, hoping to defeat insurgents in northern Mali and the Sahel.