A UN spokeswoman said on Thursday that the mission in Mali reports 243 civilians killed, 77 injured and 55 abducted or missing in the latest three-month tally, Trend reports citing Xinhua.
Stephanie Tremblay, an associate spokeswoman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said the mission, known as MINUSMA, documented 375 violations and abuses of human rights and international humanitarian law. It represents a 20 percent decrease compared to the previous quarterly humanitarian report on trends in violations and abuses of human rights and international humanitarian law.
Tremblay said the latest quarterly report, issued on Wednesday and covering from July 1 to Sept. 30, said that of the 375 victims documented, 10 percent were women and 1 percent were children. Extremist groups continued to be the main perpetrators.
"The UN mission welcomes the efforts made by the Malian authorities to combat impunity, including the announcement of the opening of investigations into allegations of violations attributed to the Malian defense and security forces," she said. "The mission continues to actively support national efforts to ensure greater respect for human rights and to end impunity, including through training and capacity-building."
Mali, one of the poorest countries, is on the fringe of the Sahel and suffers raids from extremist groups, some of which are based in the Sahara Desert.