Four UN peacekeepers were killed on Wednesday when a mine exploded under their vehicle in central Mali in a deliberate attack, capping a bloody week for civilians and security forces in the West African nation. Jihadists have ramped up their activities in central Mali in recent months, targeting domestic and foreign forces in violence once confined to the restive north.
The UN said in a statement that the "explosion of a mine or IED against a MINUSMA vehicle on the Boni-Douentza road" in the Mopti region killed the four peacekeepers and wounded four more. The mission, known by the acronym MINUSMA, counts almost 11,000 peacekeepers and has been deployed in Mali since 2013 to counter a jihadist insurgency and general lawlessness.
"MINUSMA is currently upgrading its security presence in central Mali," Mission chief Mahamat Saleh Annadif said. "Cornered, the terrorists are multiplying their attacks." Six Malian soldiers were killed on Tuesday when their vehicle struck a mine, the army said on Wednesday, and a forest ranger was gunned down in a third incident blamed on jihadists.
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