Double attack on UN mission in Mali kills 9 people

UN mission in Mali, established in 2013, has been repeatedly targeted in terrorist attacks UN mission in Mali, established in 2013, has been repeatedly targeted in terrorist attacks MINUSMA/Marco Dormino

14 August 2017
Two deadly attacks in one day, targeting the MINUSMA camp, in the centre of the country and the mission headquarters in Timbuktu left 9 people dead.

 

Two separate attacks took place on August 14th hitting the UN mission camps in Mali. 9 people were killed in total in the two attacks, which included a UN peacekeeper, a Malian soldier, a member of the Malian gendarmerie and 6 Malian contractors.

The first attack targeted the MINUSMA (Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission) camp in Douenza, in the centre of the country, where unidentified gunmen opened fire at the camp. The retaliation by the UN forces led to the death of two assailants. The second attack took place at a MINUSMA camp in the city of Timbuktu, in the north western part of Mali. Six assailants were killed in the immediate reaction to the attack by the UN forces. According to the UN, the terrorists were armed with grenades and kalashnikovs.

The attacks took place just one day before a security council meeting was to be held on peace in Africa. The UN peacekeeping mission in Mali (MINUSMA) has been established since 2013 and, along with the French military forces, to this day is continuing operations aimed at stabilization of the region and active pushback of the jihadi armed groups that took control of the northern regions of Mali in 2012. The UN currently has a force of more than 15,000 people in this mission.

Despite repeated terrorist attacks against the UN mission, the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, in a statement following the attacks, has reaffirmed the UN’s stand in the Sahel region and its commitment to peacekeeping efforts against the threats of terrorism. The Secretary-General and the UN Security Council condemned the attacks in issued statements.

 

To read more, visit:

http://mobile.lemonde.fr/afrique/article/2017/08/14/attaque-meurtriere-contre-les-nations-unies-a-tombouctou_5172416_3212.html
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=57354&Kw1=Mali&Kw2=&Kw3=#.WZvH9JMjHVo
http://www.bbc.com/afrique/region-40924147

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