A/HRC/40/77 in the central part of the country and in the areas of Timbuktu, Ménaka and Gao continues to be marked by a multitude of serious human rights abuses and violations. 1. Human rights violations committed by the Malian armed forces 30. The Independent Expert was informed that, on 19 May 2018, members of the Malian armed forces under the command of the Joint Force of the Group of Five for the Sahel reportedly killed at least 12 civilians in Boulikessi, Mopti Region, in retaliation for the murder of one of their own. On 7 July 2018, the Ministry of Justice announced the opening of a judicial inquiry into the incident. On 5 September, the Mopti prosecutor asked MINUSMA to provide support for the inquiry into the events in Boulikessi. MINUSMA also investigated allegations of the summary executions of 25 civilians on 13 June 2018 in the village of Nantaka, Mopti Region. On 19 June, the Minister of Defence issued a statement confirming the existence of a mass grave near Nantaka and the involvement of members of the Malian defence and security forces in that connection. In two press releases, MINUSMA expressed concern about serious human rights violations committed by members of the Malian armed forces and informed the Government that it stood ready to support investigations into those incidents. 31. The counter-terrorism operations conducted by the Malian defence and security forces in Mopti Region have reportedly led to summary executions, enforced disappearances, torture, ill-treatment and arbitrary arrests. Most of the victims have been members of the Fulani community. 32. The Independent Expert received reports of the extrajudicial execution of six civilians by members of the Malian armed forces on 13 August 2018 in the village of Doma, Mopti Region. The inhabitants had apparently fled to a neighbouring village for safety a month earlier. On 13 August, however, eight of them returned to Doma to protect the grain stores they had left behind. Alleged members of the Malian armed forces then arrived and shot six of them dead. The victims were members of the Fulani community between 21 and 40 years old. Two of the eight managed to escape. The bodies of the victims were reportedly identified by members of the Fulani community who had moved to the neighbouring village. 33. The Independent Expert received information regarding the ban on travel by motorcycle and pickup truck imposed in February 2018 in a number of locations. The Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces banned travel by motorcycle and pickup truck in several population centres in Ségou, Mopti and Timbuktu Regions in response to the growing number of attacks on civilians and security forces. This was one of the measures taken by the Malian army to counter jihadists and other members of armed groups who use motorcycles for their attacks. As motorcycles are the most widely used means of transportation, this measure has made the daily lives of the people living in these areas more difficult. 2. Human rights violations committed by armed groups 34. The Independent Expert notes with concern that civilians working for the Malian Government are often the target of deadly attacks. He was informed that, on the evening of 29 April 2018, two unidentified gunmen travelling by motorcycle shot and killed the SubPrefect of Ouinerdère Commune while he was in his home in Gossi, Timbuktu Region. On 8 August 2018, suspected members of the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims shot to death the General Secretary of the Sub-Prefecture of Boni, Mopti Region, on his doorstep. On 16 October 2018, members of the armed extremist Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims kidnapped a municipal councillor from the city of Boni. According to information obtained by the Independent Expert, the victim was reportedly travelling by public transport when the attackers stopped the vehicle he was in and, without harming the other passengers, seized him. 35. These groups terrorize the population. For example, in an incident that occurred on 21 September 2018, between four and five alleged members of the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims reportedly killed a 35-year-old butcher from the Bambara community in the village of Dera in Mopti Region. Armed persons apparently arrived on the bank of a 8 GE.19-00939