BAMAKO, June 30, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - An airstrike targeted a vehicle travelling

near Mali's border with Niger, killing eight civilians, local and security

sources said on Tuesday.

The victims were on their way to a weekly fair in Inkadewane, around 50

kilometres (32 miles) from the region's main town Menaka, when they were hit

on Friday, a local source said.

Nobody immediately claimed responsibility for the strike, but recent weeks

have seen increased operations by the Malian army and Russian Africa Corps

auxiliaries.

"All of the passengers, including teenagers, were killed instantly," the

source said.

A local lawmaker, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said those killed

included an official in charge of a vaccination programme at the regional

Intadeyni health centre.

"It's an absolute tragedy," said the lawmaker, citing Menaka's "huge health

needs".

The Mali military and its Russian allies have intensified operations

following large-scale attacks in late April by the Al-Qaeda-affiliated JNIM

group and its Tuareg separatist allies, in which Mali's defence minister was

killed.

The ruling junta has put in place a slew of security measures, including

banning the use of motorcycles more powerful than 125 cc outside major

cities, motorbikes being the preferred mode of transport for jihadist

fighters.

"Travelling in pickups and on motorcycles has become a major risk for

civilians in these areas, even more so since the events of April 25," a

security source told AFP, adding that the population "now fears moving

outside the main cities to get supplies".

On Monday, Africa Corps, the Moscow-controlled paramilitary group, posted a

video on its Facebook page claiming to have used a drone to destroy a pickup

depicted as belonging to "terrorists" it said was "transporting weapons" in

the Tidermene area.

Also Monday, Human Rights Watch accused JNIM jihadists, their Tuareg rebel

allies, the Malian army and the Africa Corps of all having committed serious

abuses against civilians in the wake of April's attacks on the Malian junta.

BSS/AFP/SSS/1948 hrs