Mali woman who praised army on TikTok abducted and executed, state TV reports

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(Reuters) -A Malian woman who regularly posted videos on TikTok praising the army has been abducted by armed men and executed in a public square, state television and two local sources said.

Mariam Cisse, who had nearly 100,000 followers on the video-sharing site, was taken in the northern town of Tonka on Thursday and later shot dead by her captors, state TV network ORTM said.

The area is contested between Mali’s army and an al Qaeda-allied insurgent group known as Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM).

The story was confirmed by two local sources who asked not to be named because of fears for their safety. Neither witnessed the execution themselves, but one said they had heard the details from someone in the crowd, the other from Cisse’s family.

“Mariam was forcibly taken from the market in front of everyone,” one source said.

One source said the killing took place on Friday, while state TV and the second source said it took place on Saturday.

The attackers were most likely members of local jihadist groups fighting Mali’s army, one of the sources said. No group has claimed responsibility.

In one video on her TikTok feed, Cisse posted a clip of herself wearing military fatigues with the caption “Vive Mali”.

“This young woman simply wanted to promote her community through her TikTok posts and encourage the Malian army in its missions to protect people and their property,” the state TV report said, without naming the abductors.

Mali’s military government is under growing pressure from JNIM and other armed groups.

A two-month-old fuel blockade by al Qaeda-linked militants has all but paralysed the capital, raising concern that the jihadists might try eventually to impose their rule.

(Reporting by Mali newsroom; Writing by Jessica Donati; Editing by Robbie Corey-Boulet and Andrew Heavens)