APA – Bamako (Mali) – Humanitarian organizations are increasingly targeted in the Sahel.
The attack took place on 5 September at around 16:00 (GMT). A rented vehicle carrying a medical referral for the NGO Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) from Hombori to Douentza, in the Mopti region of central Mali, came under automatic weapons fire.
The vehicle was carrying at least four people, including a pregnant woman who had just lost her baby, her mother, the driver and his companion. At least two people were killed, including the pregnant woman and the driver. According to our sources, the attackers may have had the wrong target, as the vehicle in question did not bear the MSF logo.
For some time now, Mali has seen an increase in the number of incidents of crime and violence against humanitarian workers and their property.
Threats and obstructions to humanitarian operations include military operations and hostilities in several parts of the country, where non-state armed groups continue to exert pressure on the population.
Despite the availability of food, medicines and nutritional supplies, the prolongation of these restrictions on movement could affect the population’s ability to receive supplies. In several areas of the country, terrorists have imposed blockades that are suffocating the population.
Humanitarian actors are advised to contact local authorities before carrying out humanitarian operations in the area. In some cases, their requests are denied due to the security situation.
Displacement as a result of military confrontations is also widespread in many parts of the country. There are now nearly 400,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Mali, the vast majority of whom have fled their homes because of insecurity.
Indirect intimidation by non-state armed groups of humanitarian actors involved in social cohesion activities (dialogue sensitization, mediation processes, etc.) has been reported.
In some parts of the country, some actors have suspended this type of activity following the kidnapping of community leaders working with NGOs in the implementation of these activities. Messages hostile to this type of activity and calling for distrust of certain NGOs have been circulated on social networks.
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