UN human rights report says at least 500 believed to have died in Mali village massacre last year

By KRISTA LARSON
Associated Press

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — A new report from the U.N. Human Rights Office says the death toll from a massacre last year in central Mali is now believed to be at least 500 people killed. The new figure is significantly higher than the figure of 300 previously given by Human Rights Watch. The killings over five days in central Mali already have been called the worst single atrocity in Mali’s decade-long fight against Islamic extremists. Malian authorities have said that their operation last March neutralized extremists and did not allow U.N. investigators to visit the village. U.N. investigators analyzed satellite imagery in addition to speaking with victims and witnesses, the report said.