A popular Malian TikTok creator, Mariam Cisse, has been abducted and executed by suspected Al-Qaeda-linked jihadists in northern Mali, in a move that has shocked the West African nation.
Cisse, believed to be in her 20s, was reportedly taken from a local fair while livestreaming on November 6 and executed the following day in Independence Square, Tonka, in the Timbuktu region. Sources say she was shot by members of Jama’at Nasr al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), a notorious jihadist group active in the area.
The social media influencer, who had around 90,000 followers, frequently posted videos highlighting life in Tonka and often expressed support for Mali’s army, even wearing military uniforms in some of her TikTok content. According to her brother, the jihadists accused her of “informing the Malian army of their movements.”
A security source described the killing as a “barbaric” act, while a local official condemned it as an “ignoble act” intended to intimidate Malians from publicly supporting the military.
Mali, governed by a military junta, has been struggling to contain a jihadist insurgency that began in 2012, with attacks against civilians and government supporters continuing across the north.
Cisse’s death has drawn international attention and underscores the extreme risks faced by those living under the influence of jihadist groups in conflict-affected areas of Mali.