Image copyright Getty Images Image caption The Fulani are semi-nomadic herders

Armed men believed to be traditional hunters have killed at least 37 people in an attack on a village in central Mali, the country's government says.

Many homes were burned in Koulogon village, in the central Mopti region, officials added.

The government has launched an investigation into the attack.

Last year, hundreds of people died in clashes between Dogon hunters and members of the largely nomadic Fula ethnic group.

The raid on Koulogon happened at about 05:00 GMT on Tuesday, a government statement said.

Fulani villager Allaye Yattara told AFP news agency he was outside the village with cattle when he heard shots.

"Our village chief Moussa Diallo was killed, along with members of his family, including a young girl," he said.

Clashes between Dogon hunters and semi-nomadic Fulani herders are often over access to land and water.

The Dogon also accuse Fulanis of ties to jihadist groups. The Fulanis claim that Mali's military has armed the hunters to attack them.

France helped Malian forces stave off a jihadist insurgency that took control of large parts of the troubled north in 2012.</s>BAMAKO: Armed men killed 37 civilians on Tuesday in central Mali, where ethnic violence cost hundreds of lives last year, the government said in a statement.

The government said the attackers, who were dressed as traditional Donzo hunters, raided the village of Koulogon in the central Mopti region around 5 a.m. (0500 GMT) and that some of the victims were children.</s>Nairobi - At least 37 people have been killed in an attack on a village in central Mali, the government confirmed late Tuesday. Children and old people are said to be among the victims of the attack on the village of Koulogon in the Mopti region, Malian Communications Minister Arouna Modibo Toure said on Twitter.

He expressed his condolences to the families affected.

The government said many people had been injured in the attack and houses burnt down.

Armed men reportedly made off with livestock from the village, according to RFI.

Soldiers were sent to the region to provide security, the government said. The exact background of the attack was initially unclear.

The attackers had worn traditional Dozo clothes, the government statement said.

The area has seen tensions between shepherds of the Fulani people and traditional Dozo hunters.

Tensions between rival ethnic groups often spurred on by broader instability in the country, is common the West African state.

Several Sunni terrorist groups are also active in northern and central Mali, many of which have sworn allegiance to al-Qaeda.

In Mali, a 15,500-strong UN force is stationed to stabilize the state and monitor a 2015 national peace agreement.

Among the troops are some 1 000 German soldiers: For the Bundeswehr, it is after Afghanistan the second largest foreign mission, and is considered its most dangerous.</s>Armed men killed 37 Fulani civilians on Tuesday in central Mali, where ethnic violence cost hundreds of lives last year, the government has said.

Violence between Fulani and rival communities has compounded an already dire security situation in Mali’s semi-arid and desert regions, which are used as a base by jihadist groups with ties to al-Qaida and Islamic State.

The government said the attackers, who were dressed as traditional Donzo hunters, had raided the village of Koulogon in the central Mopti region and that some of the victims were children.

Moulage Guindo, the mayor of Bankass, the nearest town, said the attack occurred at around the time of the first call to prayer of the new year and targeted the Fulani part of Koulogon. He said another part of Koulogon less than half a mile away was mostly inhabited by Dogon, an ethnic group to which the Donzos are linked.

Mali has been in turmoil since Tuareg rebels and loosely allied Islamists took over its north in 2012, prompting French forces to intervene to push them back the following year. Islamists have since regained a foothold in the north and centre, tapping into ethnic rivalries to recruit new members.</s>By The Associated Press

BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — Mali’s government said that armed men attacked a central village, killing 37 civilians, in what appeared to be ethnic violence. State television broadcast a government announcement that men dressed as Dozo…

BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — Mali’s government said that armed men attacked a central village, killing 37 civilians, in what appeared to be ethnic violence.

The Fulani Association head Tabital Pulaaku said those killed were from the Fulani ethnic group and included the village chief.

The violence highlights the continuing tensions in central Mali between the Fulani, who are accused of being linked to al-Qaida, and the Dozo militia.

Mali’s government has started a disarmament campaign to take weapons from the rival groups. This attack is expected to make local groups unhappy to give up their arms.

Several human rights groups have reported several hundred civilians killed in central Mali because of attacks by armed groups.

Copyright © 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.</s>BAMAKO, MALI— Mali’s government said that armed men attacked a central village, killing 37 civilians, in what appeared to be ethnic violence.

The Fulani Association head Tabital Pulaaku said those killed were from the Fulani ethnic group and included the village chief.

The violence highlights the continuing tensions in central Mali between the Fulani, who are accused of being linked to al-Qaida, and the Dozo militia.

Mali’s government has started a disarmament campaign to take weapons from the rival groups. This attack is expected to make local groups unhappy to give up their arms.</s>Seven people were arrested in central Mali Wednesday, the day after 37 civilians were killed when armed men attacked a village in the region in the latest clash between warring communities, the government said.

Following the New Year’s Day massacre in the village of Koulogon, in the central Mopti region, “Mali army forces were rushed to the scene”, the civil protection ministry said in a statement, adding they “arrested seven suspects” without giving details on those detained.

Tuesday’s attackers were believed to be traditional Dogon hunters who targeted the village of Fulani herders.

The same Mali army mission also went into Bobosso village, near the Burkina Faso border, following arson attacks, killing one suspect and detaining 24 others, the ministry said.

France helped Malian forces stave off a jihadist insurgency that took control of large parts of the troubled north in 2012, but since the death in November of Fulani jihadist figure Amadou Koufa, inter-group conflict has increased.

The violence is fuelled by accusations of Fulani grazing cattle on Dogon land and disputes over access to land and water.

The UN recorded more than 500 civilian deaths in the area in 2018.

“Large-scale operations” are in preparation with the ministry of defence to deal with the intercommunal violence, the civil defence ministry said in its statement.</s>Bamako, Mali | AFP | Thirty-seven civilians were killed when armed men believed to be traditional Dogon hunters attacked a village of Fulani herders in central Mali Tuesday in the latest clash between the warring communities, the government said.

The attack on Koulogon village near Bankass in the Mopti region was carried out by “armed men dressed like traditional dozo hunters” allied to the Dogon ethnic group, said an official statement.

“In addition to the 37 recorded deaths, all civilians, the casualty toll includes several wounded and many burned homes”, it added.

Earlier, a security source and a man who said he had witnessed the attack also blamed the Dogon, and put the number of dead at 33.

Allaye Yattara, a Fulani, told AFP: “Our village chief Moussa Diallo was killed in the attack along with old women, (and) a girl, all members of his family.”

France helped Malian forces stave off a jihadist insurgency that took control of large parts of the troubled north in 2012, but since the death in November of Fulani jihadist figure Amadou Koufa, inter-group conflict has increased.

The violence is fuelled by accusations of Fulani grazing cattle on Dogon land and disputes over access to land and water.

The UN recorded more than 500 civilian deaths in the area in 2018.

In June, 24 members of the Fulani community were killed in an attack a UN probe blamed on the Dogon.</s>BAMAKO, Mali — Mali’s government said that armed men attacked a central village, killing 37 civilians, in what appeared to be ethnic violence.

The Fulani Association head Tabital Pulaaku said those killed were from the Fulani ethnic group and included the village chief.

The violence highlights the continuing tensions in central Mali between the Fulani, who are accused of being linked to al-Qaida, and the Dozo militia.

Mali’s government has started a disarmament campaign to take weapons from the rival groups. This attack is expected to make local groups unhappy to give up their arms.

Several human rights groups have reported several hundred civilians killed in central Mali because of attacks by armed groups.

Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.</s>Mali has been in turmoil since Tuareg rebels and loosely allied Islamists took over its north in 2012

BAMAKO, Jan 1 (Reuters) - Armed men killed 37 Fulani civilians on Tuesday in central Mali, where ethnic violence cost hundreds of lives last year, the government said.
Armed men believed to be traditional hunters have killed at least 37 people in an attack on a village in central Mali.