The girl recorded videos on Tik Tok about everyday life in her hometown of Tonka, located in the Timbuktu region in the north of the country. She had over 90 thousand. subscribers.
According to the Malian portal JournalduMali, those controlling the northern part of the country are jihadists from the Al-Qaeda-linked Support Group for Muslims and Islam (JNIM). they kidnapped her while she was in the market in Echel, a town located about twenty kilometers from Tonka.
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What was the name of the execution victim?
How old was Mariam Cisse?
Who controls the northern part of Mali?
Which countries have asked their citizens to leave Mali?
On Sunday, her brother said in an interview with the French agency AFP that sister was accused by jihadists of “collaborating with the Malian army.” The proof of this cooperation was the blurred figures of armed men visible in the background of one of her videos that she posted on the Internet.
The brother also witnessed the execution and saw Mariam being taken by motorcycle to Independence Square in Tonka, where she was shot in front of her neighbors and friends.
The African country is plunged into crisis
Mali has been in a deep security crisis since 2012. The country is terrorized by JNIM fighters, who completely control its northern, central and western parts, and by terrorists from the Islamic State (IS).
The military junta that has been in power since 2020, led by General Assimi Goita, after expelling French troops and inviting Russian mercenaries in their place, is losing the war against Islamic extremists.
Since September, JNIM has imposed a blockade on fuel supplies to the country, closing major highways used to transport it from neighboring Senegal and Côte d'Ivoire.
The lockdown and insecurity have made traveling in Mali very risky for foreigners. Therefore, many countries have urged their citizens to leave the country as soon as possible. The United States, Canada, Germany, Great Britain, Spain, Italy, South Korea and Australia have already done so, and over the weekend France also called on its citizens in Mali to leave immediately.
