French military debunks Wagner disinformation video in Mali

French army debunks Russian Wagner Group disinformation video

Articles in leading French dailies including ?Le Figaro, Le Monde and Liberation (22 April) as well as in other French print and broadcast media outlets, reported that mercenaries from the Russian Wagner group had staged a fake mass burial place for Malian victims of alleged French executions as part of a smear campaign against the French army presence and to whip up anti-French sentiments in Mali and elsewhere in Africa. A video was posted on 21 April, the day after a first message from a fake profile warning about "what the French left behind when they left their base in Gossi".

"The possibility of an attack on Barkhane's reputation was up in the air, said a military source" quoted in Le Figaro.

"A horrified Dia Diarra, described as a 'former Malian officer' and 'political analyst', broadcast images of bodies buried in the sand," Le Figaro reported, about the photos and short video of alleged victims of a massacre perpetrated by French soldiers as they left Gossi.

"Diarra's profile was identified as a likely fake. He appeared on another account on the Russian VK network, under the name Alexander Murillo. He posts regularly on a Twitter account created in January 2022. He is 'already known to have manipulated false testimonies in the past, in support of Russian informational actions'," Le Figaro added.

"The French army had identified an 'informational attack' and was trying to defuse it by presenting evidence of the manipulation to Le Figaro and a handful of other media," the daily reported.

For the first time the French army decided to communicate publicly on such incidents. As France is winding down its Barkhane operation in Mali after nine years, it has to manage its departure as it fears a surge of consequences, Le Figaro said.

The manipulation was exposed after the French military shared a video, most likely filmed from a high-flying observation platform, of what were reported to be Wagner mercenaries shovelling sand over bodies.

France 24 international TV news channel posted a 4-min video report, in English, on YouTube that gives both extensive background of the Wagner disinformation operation, and of its unmasking.