16 Muslim preachers killed in Mali

10 Sep 2012, 2:20 pm   -   Source: AAP
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Ansar Dine rebels seized control of Mali's north this year along with various other Islamist factions. (AAP)

Ansar Dine rebels seized control of Mali's north this year along with various other Islamist factions. (AAP)

Sixteen Muslim preachers have been shot dead in Mali after their long beards aroused the suspicion of Mali's military, which confused them for extremists.

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Sixteen Muslim preachers from a moderate sect have been shot dead in central Mali as they travelled by road to a religious conference, the Malian and Mauritanian governments say.

Early reports indicate the men's long beards aroused the suspicion of Mali's military, which confused them for extremist rebels who have taken over the nation's north.

The preachers were heading to the gathering in Bamako when they were executed in Diabaly, 430 kilometres north of the capital.

The dead included at least 12 nationals of Mauritania, the Mauritanian government said. It blamed Malian security forces for executing the preachers. A relative of two of the victims and a Mali police official confirmed this version of events.

Mali confirmed 16 people had been killed.

"In the name of the people of Mali, the government deeply regrets this incident," a statement said. "The government has ordered that an investigation be immediately launched, the results of which will be communicated to the public and the international community."

Mohamed Bashir, who said he had two cousins die in the shooting, said the 16 ministers came from the peaceful Dawa sect. He said he received a phone call from a customs officer near Diabaly who told him that the group had aroused the suspicion of the Malian military, which has been on edge since a March 21 coup in the capital and the subsequent seizure of the north by Muslim extremists, some of whom are allied with al-Qaeda.

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