US State Department denounces atrocities committed by Russian Wagner group in Libya and Mali
After years of denying any links between the Russian government and the Wagner Group, President Putin admitted in June 2023 that the Kremlin had provided financial support to the group to the tune of 86 billion rubles (the equivalent of some 940 million dollars in October 2023) between May 2022 and May 2023. The death of the boss of the Wagner group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, on August 23, 2023, offers the opportunity to revisit some of the most blatant lies of the Russian government concerning the role, objectives and alleged successes of the Wagner Group. This report analyzes and refutes the false claims that Russia continues to propagate about the Wagner Group's activities in Mali and Libya, and reveals what it really is: a group of criminals motivated by greed rather than an effective anti-terrorism force .
The exploitation of African resources, including gold, diamonds and timber, by the Wagner Group represents only one aspect of the destabilizing influence of this transnational criminal organization in Africa. The group's forces have reportedly razed entire villages and murdered civilians in the Central African Republic (CAR) to advance their economic interests in the mining sector; took part in illegal executions in Mali; looted artisanal gold mines in Sudan; and undermined democratic institutions in every country where they operated. They were also accused of paying their bills with counterfeit money. This criminal and predatory behavior towards Africans will not stop with the death of Yevgeny Prigozhin.
Wherever the Wagner group is deployed, there is a sharp increase in the number of civilian deaths. According to The Economist and recent data published by Armed Conflict Location and Event (ACLED) , violence perpetrated by the Wagner group against civilians in Mali (and the Central African Republic (CAR)) is not only frequent, but also far deadlier for non-combatants than attacks carried out by state or rebel forces. The Economist reports that as of August 2023, the group has killed at least 1,800 African civilians. Wagner justifies his brutal presence in Africa by claiming that it is “support for peace and stability”. Yet in Mali alone, terrorist violence against civilians has jumped 278% since 2021.
Russia's lies in Mali
Russian officials, Russian state-funded media, and Kremlin-linked Telegram channels continue to broadcast messages about the Wagner Group's supposedly "positive" role in Mali since its deployment in 2021. Despite these publications, the transitional government of Mali has still not publicly recognized the presence of the group on its territory. Propaganda videos portraying Wagner Group forces as saviors and “ warrior angels ” are still circulating online. Before the group's deployment in Mali, Russia put forward false narratives similar to those used in the Central African Republic, repeating the myth that "Russian instructors" would bring peace, stability and set a new milestone in the fight against terrorism in the country. Aleksandr Ivanov, the head of the US-sanctioned COSI, praised the Wagner group in Malian news sites, saying it was doing "excellent work all over the world", and saying it would " fight terrorism everywhere. A Russia-linked propaganda video released after the Wagner Group deployed to Mali in late 2021 falsely suggested that the United States and France supported violent religious extremists in Mali.
The truth about the Wagner group in Mali
The facts reveal a completely different reality.
Contrary to Russia's claims, the Wagner Group has not led an effective fight against terrorism in Mali since its first deployment in December 2021. The UN Panel of Experts on Mali reported in August 2023 that the area of Malian territory controlled by Daesh in the Sahel had almost doubled in less than a year. The Wagner Group has failed to improve Mali's security, with 2022 being the deadliest year for civilians in that country since the conflict began in 2012.
Wagner Group forces were filmed in April 2022 burying around ten corpses in a mass grave near the Gossi military base in Mali. The Wagner group then produced modified and misleading videos in an attempt to blame the French army for this affair and thus stir up anti-French and anti-Western sentiment in Mali.
Russia's lies in Libya
Russian state media regularly accuse NATO forces of destroying the Libyan state and causing the current instability there, in order to serve the interests of the Alliance member states. . These propaganda organs support the lying narrative of Russia, which presents itself as an altruistic and anti-colonial power seeking only to come to the aid of African countries. For years, the Russian government has rejected any allegations of the presence of Russian mercenaries or military personnel in Libya, with Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova saying in 2020 that there was "no presence Russian in Libya” and that “CMPs are not authorized by Russian law”. Russian government officials have repeatedly claimed that accusations that Russia took sides in the Libyan conflict were "lies" and that it was working to achieve "a ceasefire and a settlement." politics of conflict”. In 2020, Russia's envoy to the United Nations, Vassily Nebenzya, condemned accusations of the involvement of Russian mercenaries in Libya: "This information (...) is largely based on unverified or misleading data and it aims to discredit Russia's policy towards Libya. These are obviously made-up stories. »
The truth about the Wagner group in Libya
There is unequivocal evidence that the Wagner Group has entered Libya for political and financial purposes, committed human rights violations against the Libyan people, and is escalating the current instability.
The Wagner Group, which the Russian government has admitted supporting , allegedly acted in violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1970 and other relevant resolutions by supplying military equipment and mercenaries to the front lines of the Libyan conflict , including fighter planes, armored vehicles and air defense systems. According to the United States Africa Command (AFRICOM) , at least 14 Mig-29s and Su-24s were repainted to conceal their original Russian markings and were then flown to Libya from Russian bases in Syria. The Wagner Group “prolongs a conflict responsible for unnecessary suffering and death of innocent civilians,” AFRICOM said .
The Wagner Group placed landmines and booby traps during its withdrawal from Tripoli in 2020, according to public information. Mines and other explosive devices are believed to have killed or injured more than 300 people in Libya between May 2020 and March 2022, including in areas previously controlled by Wagner Group forces. The final report of the UN Fact-Finding Mission (FFM) said Wagner's forces placed "military explosives in homes, inside sofas and sleeping equipment." bathrooms, and in other areas where civilians are present, resulting in deaths and injuries among the population.” The FFM determined that Wagner personnel "may have violated international law's principle of proportionality and the obligation to reduce the indiscriminate effects of mines and other explosives" and that they also "violated [the Libyans'] right to life” by refraining from eliminating munitions to ensure the safety of civilians.
According to the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, the Wagner Group has carried out disinformation campaigns in Libya to try to build support for Russian-allied figures who oppose the UN-recognized government in Tripoli. The Wagner Group set up a social media apparatus in Libya aimed at promoting Haftar, Saif al-Islam Gaddafi and other political figures whom the Kremlin believed could become future clients of Russia, and this, using methods reminiscent of those used by Prigozhin to interfere in other foreign elections, according to the Stanford Internet Observatory. Wagner created at least 12 Facebook groups to manipulate Libyan public opinion, and these pages were viewed by more than two million users each week. The group also bought 50% of the former Libyan public broadcasting company, A1 Jamahiriya TV , whose studios it transferred abroad before renewing its broadcasts in Libya.
Russia is responsible
The Russian disinformation and propaganda ecosystem continues to deploy false narratives like those described above to distract from the human rights violations and atrocities committed by the Wagner Group and evade accountability. The Kremlin-backed Wagner Group is exploiting insecurity to expand Russia's presence in Africa for political influence and financial gain. In doing so, it threatens stability and human rights on the continent. In January 2023, the United States Department of the Treasury designated the Wagner Group as a transnational criminal organization for committing, among other scandalous acts, " serious criminal acts, including mass executions, rape, kidnapping children and physical violence in the Central African Republic (CAR) and Mali .
Source: https://www.state.gov/les-atrocites-commises-par-le-groupe-wagner-en-afrique-mensonges-et-verite/