Mali’s army chief had on Wednesday, ordered an investigation into a video revealing a man in Malian military uniform cutting into a corpse in front of his peers.
The army chief had described it as a “rare barbarity” similar to cannibalism, adding that the act did not align with the West African nation’s military values.
Meanwhile, human rights groups and the United Nations have repeatedly accused Malian soldiers of serious abuses, including executions and torture, committed against civilians alleged to have been collaborating with the jihadist groups waging an insurgency in the Sahel since 2012.
These accusations have consistently been denied by the army.
The appalling video originally trending on X as at Tuesday has been removed for violating the platform’s rules. It depicted a man in military uniform sporting a Mali Armed Forces (FAMA) badge, carving up the stomach of a dead body with a machete.
The questionable soldier had said in local Malian Bambara language that he was going to eat the victim’s liver, according to comments and media reports on the footage. A surrounding group of men in fatigues laughed as he cut through the corpse.
Mali’s army has been struggling to contain jihadist groups that migrated in its arid north over a decade ago and have since spread out into its neighbouring and coastal countries.
Hundreds of thousands of people have been killed and millions displaced as militants commandeered territory, forcing foreign-backed armies to retaliate.
