Eight UN peacekeepers were killed in an attack in Mali today.

The attack happened at the Aguelhok base in northern Mali early this morning, according to a source close to the UN force in the country.

It is believed that the peacekeepers were from Chad.

The number of casualties thought to have occurred in the attack is not completely clear.

According to a Malian security source at least six peacekeepers with killed and a further 19 were injured.

A diplomat in northern Mali told AFP that several of the attackers were also killed.

Last April an attack at the same base - which is 125 miles north of Kidal and towards the border with Algeria - killed two peacekeepers and left several others wounded.

In 2015 the government and armed groups signed a peace treaty aimed at restoring stability to Mali following a brief Islamist takeover in the north.

The accord failed to stop violence committed by Islamist militants however, who have also staged attacks in Burkina Faso and Niger.

Earlier this month France and the United States criticised the authorities in Mali for their failure to stop the violent situation getting worse. </s> At least eight UN peacekeepers have been killed and many injured in a “major” assault on one of their bases in the northeastern Mali, where various Al-Qaeda and Islamic State-linked groups have been active.

The incident occurred early on Sunday in the northeastern Kidal province near the village of Aguelhok. A group of militants attacked the base using “many armed vehicles,” a statement issued by the UN peacekeeping mission in Mali, MINUSMA, said. The attack was successfully repelled, it added.

At least eight soldiers with the UN mission died in the clashes, the statement said, adding that “several others” were injured without specifying the exact number. A Malian security source told AFP that at least 19 servicemen were injured in the incident.

The identities of the affected soldiers were not officially revealed. However, some local media suggested that all those killed were from Chad. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack so far but Al Qaeda affiliates declared they made previous attacks. Two peacekeepers were killed in the assault on this base in April 2018.

The UN Secretary General’s Special Representative to Mali, Mahamat Saleh Annadif, condemned the attack and said it “demands a robust, immediate and concerted response from all forces,” adding that MINUSMA “will not let this barbarity go unpunished.”

In recent years, Mali has been hit by conflict with both Islamist rebels and ethnic Tuareg separatists. A peace treaty was signed with the secular Tuareg groups in 2012, who subsequently joined forces with the government to fight Al-Qaeda-linked militants, who had been seizing territory and imposing Sharia law on the towns and villages in the north including the ancient city of Timbuktu.

France sent troops to Mali in 2013 and managed to successfully drive back most of the Islamist factions, but violence still plagues the country’s northern regions. One of the most devastating attacks that took place in 2017 saw 60 people killed and scores injured as five suicide car bombers detonated explosives at a military base in the northern Malian city of Gao. </s> Ten United Nations peacekeepers from Chad were killed in a terrorist attack on their camp in Mali’s Kidal region on Sunday, AP reported. The Al-Qaeda claimed responsibility for the attack on the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission that also injured 25 people, according to Al Jazeera.

The extremist group purportedly said the attack was a response to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to Chad, Al Jazeera quoted a Mauritanian Al-Akhbar news agency report as saying.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the attack and expressed his condolences with the families of the deceased and the government of Chad. Guterres said the peacekeepers “responded robustly” against the attack and killed several of the assailants.

The Secretary-General called on the Malian authorities and armed groups who are signatories to the peace agreement to crack down on the attackers. </s> Al-Qaida-linked jihadists attacked a United Nations peacekeeping base in Aguelhoc in northern Mali's Kidal region, killing at least eight peacekeepers, the U.N. mission in Mali said Sunday.

 

 "The current toll is 8 blue helmets killed and several injured. The peacekeepers managed to neutralize some attackers and a prosecution was initiated against those who fled," said Myriam Dessables, spokeswoman for U.N mission in Mali.

 

 Many others were injured at the base that houses peacekeepers from Chad.

 

 Residents confirmed the Sunday morning assault saying that attackers came in motorcycles and cars.

 

 The peacekeeping mission in Mali is one of the U.N.'s deadliest.

 Mali is under threat from a number of extremist groups affiliated with al-Qaida and the Islamic State organization, and attacks have moved from the north to Central Mali. </s> BAMAKO: Gunmen killed at least eight Chadian UN peacekeepers in an attack Sunday on one of their bases in northern Mali, a source close to the MINUSMA force said.

"According to a new toll, still provisional, at least eight peacekeepers have been killed," the source said. The attack happened early Sunday at the Aguelhok base 200 kilometres north of Kidal and towards the border with Algeria, the source added.

A Malian security source spoke of at least six killed and 19 wounded, while a diplomat in northern Mali told AFP that several of the attackers were also killed. An attack at the same base last April killed two peacekeepers and left several others wounded.

More than 13,000 peacekeepers are deployed in Mali as part of a UN mission that was established after Islamist militias seized northern Mali in 2012. They were pushed backed by French troops in 2013. A peace agreement signed in 2015 by the Bamako government and armed groups was aimed at restoring stability to Mali following a brief Islamist takeover in the north. But the accord has failed to stop violence by Islamist militants, who have also staged attacks in Burkina Faso and Niger. </s> Al-Qaida-linked jihadists attacked a United Nations peacekeeping base in Aguelhoc in northern Mali's Kidal region, killing at least eight peacekeepers, the U.N. mission in Mali said Sunday.

 

 "The current toll is 8 blue helmets killed and several injured. The peacekeepers managed to neutralize some attackers and a prosecution was initiated against those who fled," said Myriam Dessables, spokeswoman for U.N mission in Mali.

 

 Many others were injured at the base that houses peacekeepers from Chad.

 

 Residents confirmed the Sunday morning assault saying that attackers came in motorcycles and cars.

 

 The peacekeeping mission in Mali is one of the U.N.'s deadliest.

 Mali is under threat from a number of extremist groups affiliated with al-Qaida and the Islamic State organization, and attacks have moved from the north to Central Mali..

 

 "The current toll is 8 blue helmets killed and several injured. The peacekeepers managed to neutralize some attackers and a prosecution was initiated against those who fled," said Myriam Dessables, spokeswoman for U.N mission in Mali.

 

 Many others were injured at the base that houses peacekeepers from Chad.

 

 Residents confirmed the Sunday morning assault saying that attackers came in motorcycles and cars.

 

 The peacekeeping mission in Mali is one of the U.N.'s deadliest.

Mali is under threat from a number of extremist groups affiliated with al-Qaida and the Islamic State organization, and attacks have moved from the north to Central Mali. </s> At least one peacekeeper has been killed and a dozen more injured when suspected terrorists dressed as United Nations peacekeepers attacked two bases in Mali with rockets and car bombs.

The attackers fired a dozen rockets at the bases of the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Mali, Minusma, and the French-led Operation Barkhane, Mali's security ministry said in a statement on Sunday. The attack took place on Saturday afternoon, near Timbuktu's airport.

The attackers wore blue helmets and drove vehicles marked with the U.N. acronym. Their vehicles were also rigged with explosives. One of the vehicles exploded, while the other was intercepted by troops.

Ten troops in the Barkhane camp were injured, with five seriously wounded. One Malian soldier was killed, while two others were injured, the statement said.

Security forces are still searching for the attackers.

In a tweet, Under Secretary for Peacekeeping Jean-Pierre Lacroix condemned the attack, but reiterated the U.N.'s unwavering determination to support peace in Mali. </s> BAMAKO: Gunmen killed at least eight Chadian UN peacekeepers in an attack Sunday on one of their bases in northern Mali, multiple sources reported.

The UN spokesman in Mali condemned what he described as a vile and cowardly attack and called for a “robust” response.“According to a new toll, still provisional, at least eight peacekeepers have been killed,” a source close to the MINUSMA force said. The attack happened early Sunday at the Aguelhok base 200 kilometres (125 miles) north of Kidal and towards the border with Algeria, the source added.

A diplomat in northern Mali told AFP that several of the attackers had also been killed.Mahamat Saleh Annadif, the UN’s special representative for Mali, condemned the attack in a statement. “Peacekeepers of the MINUSMA force at Aguelhok fought off a sophisticated attack by assailants who arrived on several armed vehicles,” he said. The “cowardly” attack, he added, “illustrates the determination of the terrorists to sow chaos.

“It demands a robust, immediate and concerted response from all forces to destroy the peril of terrorism in the Sahel.”An attack at the same base last April killed two peacekeepers and left several others wounded.

More than 13,000 peacekeepers are deployed in Mali as part of a UN mission that was established after Islamist militias seized northern Mali in 2012. They were pushed backed by French troops in 2013. A peace agreement signed in 2015 by the Bamako government and armed groups was aimed at restoring stability to Mali following a brief Islamist takeover in the north. But the accord has failed to stop violence by Islamist militants, who have also staged attacks in neighbouring Burkina Faso and Niger.

Earlier this month, both France and the United States criticised the authorities in Mali for their failure to stem the worsening violence.On January 16, France threatened to push for more targeted sanctions to be imposed on Mali after hearing a UN official report on worsening violence in the West African country. And Washington renewed its warning that it would push for changes to the peacekeeping mission in Mali, possibly a major drawdown, if there was no progress.

In August, a panel of experts said in a report to the UN Security Council that inter-communal conflicts in the region were exacerbating existing tensions from clashes between jihadists groups and international and Malian forces. </s> The UN's MINUSMA force said one of its peacekeepers had been killed in Saturday's four-hour rocket, mortar and car bomb attack at international troops' "Super Camp" neighbouring Timbuktu's airport. Seven others were wounded along with two civilians.

France said seven of its soldiers were hurt, lowering an initial toll from Malian authorities who had said a dozen French troops were wounded.

Some of the assailants, who have yet to be identified, came disguised as peacekeepers in order to sow confusion among troops trying to repel the attack.

MINUSMA head Mahamat Saleh Annadif praised the peacekeepers who "valiantly repulsed in close coordination with the international forces" this "massive and far-reaching attack".

"This attack illustrates once again the cowardice for terrorist groups in the face of which the United Nations and their partners continue to stand opposed with unfailing determination," he said in a statement.

UN peacekeeping chief Jean-Pierre Lacroix deplored the assault on Twitter, vowing: "Our determination to support peace in Mali remains unshakeable."

French military spokesman Patrik Steiger said the attackers had "failed in their objective of causing the maximum damage possible".

"Around 15 (attackers) were killed," he added, some of them outside the military camp's outer walls.

"Some attackers managed to enter, including some disguised as peacekeepers," he said, adding that friendly fire was not involved.

Mali's security ministry said Saturday the assailants had tried to detonate two car bombs, one of them a vehicle in the colours of the Malian armed forces and the other carrying the UN logo.

The first exploded while troops managed to immobilise the second, the ministry said.

The French military said there had been three car bombs.
At least ten United Nations peacekeepers are killed and several others injured in a Islamist militant attack on their base in Mali's northern Kidal Region.