Unidentified militants are targeting locals suspected of 'collaborating' with French troops deployed in northern Mali, a security official said Wednesday.
At least ten civilians working with French troops in the Kidal region have been killed within the past six days, the official, requesting anonymity, told Anadolu Agency.
He believes the attacks are being carried out by armed Islamist militants who are also targeting civilians working with the Malian army.
On Tuesday, France Radio International reported that the so-called Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and Tawhid Wal Jihad groups were behind the attacks.
The radio station mentioned that over the past several days, both groups had distributed flyers warning local residents against cooperating with French or other foreign troops.
AQIM recently claimed responsibility for the killing of two journalists in Kidal amid a general uptick in militant violence in the region.
Under a U.N. mandate, thousands of multinational peacekeepers were deployed in northern Mali last summer to confront a militant insurgency waged by ethnic Tuaregs and Islamist fighters who managed to capture large swathes of the country's north following a 2012 military coup.
France, along with several of Mali's neighbors, launched a military offensive in 2013 to retake captured areas.
By Sidi Ould Abdel-Malek
englishnews@aa.com.tr
