Three Malian soldiers killed in landmine explosion

Three Malian soldiers were killed on Tuesday in the Mopti region, central Mali near the border with Burkina Faso, after their vehicle hit a land mine.

Two others were injured in the explosion, according to a statement issued by the Malian defense minister.

Cowardly Act

The Minister of Defense, Tieman Hubert, condemned the attack which is believed to have been caused by Islamist rebels calling it “a cowardly act and criminal“, encouraging the Malian armed forces to carry on in their fight against terrorism.

On February 5, an officer of the Malian army had perished in an attack against the United Nations (UN) base in Timbuktu. The attack was claimed by AQIM, Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.

Several parts of the territory have been beyond the control of the Malian army despite the signing of peace agreements between the government and armed groups between May and June 2015.

Mali’s northern region has seen a resurgence of a number of attacks by armed groups as well as Islamist militants who briefly held the area until they were scattered by a French military intervention in 2013.

Malian authorities also blame a new armed group called the Massina Liberation Front for the growing number of attacks in the central Mopti region.