At least 70 people have been killed in a fresh wave of jihadist attacks in central Mali over the past few days, according to local and security sources.
The assaults, claimed by the Al-Qaeda-linked Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal Muslimeen (JNIM), included coordinated attacks on Friday following earlier raids on villages that left at least 30 dead on Wednesday.
A separate local official however put the death toll higher, estimating that around 80 people have died.
“Our hearts are bleeding,” a local youth leader said, accusing nearby army detachments of failing to intervene despite repeated calls for assistance, as cited by AFP.