[JURIST] A United Nations internal inquiry [report] on Thursday concluded that members of the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) used “unauthorized and excessive force” resulting in the deaths of three civilian protesters and the injuries of four other individuals in January. Launched [press release] in February, the inquiry also concluded that some protestors bore responsibility for the violence after the inquiry found that protestors threw Molotov cocktails and stones at the MINUSMA Headquarters in Gao, which injured five MINUSMA officers. In a statement [press release], UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon [official website] expressed regret regarding the “casualties among civilians resulting from the excessive use of force,” and condemned it as “a violation of the MINUSMA Directive on the Use of Force.” He also expressed a commitment to “ensuring that the responsible individuals are held fully accountable for their actions.” However, holding those responsible for their actions may prove difficult as UN personnel have diplomatic immunity, leaving prosecution up to the peacekeepers’ home country of Rwanda.

Following the armed rising against the Malian government in early 2012, the nation has experienced significant turmoil relating to the exercise of power by the Malian government and opposing forces. Earlier this month, the Taureg-led rebels in Mali met with [Reuters report] Algerian mediators to discuss terms of preliminary peace deals, the same deals they rejected last month. Those rebels are currently in fights with French and U.N. troops in northern Mali, seeking autonomy for the Azawad desert region. In March of last year, UN rights experts urged Mali to strengthen its judicial system due to the difficulty faced in attempting to prosecute war crimes in the nation, and called on MINUSMA to assist. In November 2014 General Amadou Haya Sanogo, the leader of the March 2012 coup, was arrested [JURIST report] on charges of murder, complicity to murder, assassination and kidnapping. In March 2013 Malian Tuareg rebels called on the ICC [JURIST report] to investigate alleged war crimes committed by Malian government forces during the conflict.