Russia’s Africa Corps accused of violent abuses in joint operations with Mali’s army

A new AP investigation reveals that Russia’s Africa Corps, the military unit that replaced the Wagner group in Mali, is being accused by fleeing civilians of widespread abuses during joint operations with Mali’s armed forces.

Refugees who recently crossed into Mauritania told AP reporters that Africa Corps personnel, often described as “white soldiers” working alongside Malian troops, were carrying out indiscriminate killings, rape and property destruction in northern and central Mali. Several described relatives disappearing, villages being burned and residents targeted without explanation. Many said the tactics resembled those used by Wagner before its withdrawal.

The interviews, conducted with 34 displaced Malians, provided testimony from the remote border region, where journalists and humanitarian teams have increasingly limited access. Most of those who spoke to AP requested anonymity, citing fears of reprisals. Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger have all shifted from Western partners to Russia in recent years as they battle armed groups linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State. Africa Corps formally replaced Wagner in Mali about six months ago. Many who returned home after Wagner’s departure said they were forced to flee again, claiming the conduct of the new contingent mirrored — and in some cases surpassed — earlier abuses.

Russia’s Africa Corps emerged after the collapse of the Wagner mercenary network, taking over many of its foreign missions and effectively absorbing its footprint in Mali. Unlike Wagner, which operated in a murky space between private enterprise and state patronage, Africa Corps is formally tied to Russia’s Defense Ministry, giving Moscow more direct oversight of its deployment. Despite the rebranding, researchers say many of the personnel, commanders and operating methods are nearly identical to those used under Wagner, creating continuity rather than a break from the past.

Since its arrival in Mali, Africa Corps has expanded joint operations with the Malian military, particularly in the country’s north — a region rich in gold deposits and long contested by extremist groups and community militias. The unit’s activities, which include escort services, patrols and search missions, have been praised in Russian state media as “essential to Mali’s security.” However, testimony gathered by AP from refugees suggests that many communities perceive little difference between Africa Corps and its predecessor, reporting continued heavy-handed tactics and growing fear in areas where journalists and humanitarian monitors struggle to gain access.

Across Africa, the expanding presence of foreign mercenary units like Africa Corps has long operated in a gray zone where accountability is difficult to enforce. Their close alignment with state security forces, combined with partnerships with local militias and clan-based fighters, often blurs who is responsible for abuses on the ground. This overlap creates an environment in which governments can deny direct involvement while benefiting from the contractors’ operations. The result is a system where actions carried out by these units fall outside the level of scrutiny applied to official state militaries. But with more civilians fleeing conflict areas and sharing consistent accounts of their experiences, the once-opaque landscape surrounding these forces is becoming clearer, highlighting how deeply intertwined they are with the violence shaping conflicts across the continent.