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French Troops Injured After Several Blasts Rock Mali Near UN Camp, French Base

Sputnik News

18:45 22.04.2018(updated 20:00 22.04.2018)

Last Sunday, militants already attacked a UN base in the city of Timbuktu in Mali with car bombs and rocket fire, killing one UN peacekeeper and injuring seven others.

The source in the Malian army told Sputnik that several French servicemen got injured in clashes after militants attacked the northern city of Timbuktu, Mali. The source added that those wounded had been evacuated by helicopters.

Earlier in the day, Reuters reported, citing locals and a source close to the UN, that several loud blasts have been heard in Timbuktu near military bases where the United Nations' blue helmets and French troops are present.

This is already the second attack in a week, as on April 15, the UN camp was targeted by the militants with car bombs and rocket fire. As a result one UN peacekeeper died and seven others got wounds. The terrorist assault prompted an anti-militant operation by Mali's military in the north of the African country; one soldier died in clashes with terrorists.

Over the past years, Mali has been suffering from a surge in violence, as jihadist groups exploit rebels from Touareg, local nomadic tribe, in order to gain control over the northern part of the country, which remains mostly lawless due to separatists' activity. In 2012, Tuareg's insurgency against the government triggered France, Mali's former colonizer, to intervene at the request of the country's authorities. France's Operation Serval forced most of the rebels out, however, jihadist are still active on northern territories which are out of the control of Malian government or French and UN forces.

Currently, French servicemen are present in Mali as a part of the ongoing anti-insurgent Operation Barkhane, which started in 2014.

The UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) has about 12,000 peacekeepers and was established by the UN Security Council resolution 2100 on April 25, 2013 alongside the French operation Serval. The mission's aim is to stabilize the country and protect civilians from jihadists active in the region.

© Sputnik