All warring parties in northern Mali are obligated to abide by the laws of war in the event of a Malian military offensive against opposition armed groups in the Kidal region. Past abuses have heightened concerns about the need for all armed forces to minimize harm to civilians and ensure the humane treatment of all prisoners, in accordance with the 1949 Geneva Conventions and customary international humanitarian law.

The Malian government should take immediate action to address child labor in mining instead of denying it. Human Rights Watch published an in-depth report on the issue in December 2011, but Malian authorities attacked this research at a news conference earlier in April 2013 and rejected well-documented evidence that child labor is used in the country’s mines.

The government of Mali should investigate allegations that Malian soldiers tortured seven suspected supporters of Islamist armed groups in Léré, near Timbuktu.

Malian government forces summarily executed at least 13 suspected Islamist supporters and forcibly disappeared five others from the garrison town of Sévaré and in Konna during January 2013. Islamist armed groups in Konna executed at least seven Malian soldiers, five of whom were wounded, and used children as soldiers in combat.