A UN peacekeeper has died of wounds sustained in an attack last week in Mali, raising the death toll in the assault to two, the United Nations said Monday. Mali has been grappling with a political and security crisis since 2012 when separatist and jihadist rebellions broke out in the north, later spreading to neighboring Niger and Burkina Faso. The UN peacekeeping force in Mali, called MINUSMA, says a “complex attack” involving an improvised explosive device and direct fire targeted a patrol Friday near the town of Ber, in the Timbuktu region. The victims were from a contingent from neighboring Burkina Faso, the mission said. MINUSMA is a common target for jihadists as an international force and symbol of state authority with around 12,000 soldiers deployed in Mali.

Source: The North Africa Journal June 13, 2023 02:57 UTC