Dynamite News Three civilians killed in attack on UN contractor in Mali
At least three Malian civilians were killed and four foreigners working for a UN-contracted mine-clearing operation wounded in a suicide attack.
Bamako: At least three Malian civilians were killed and four foreigners working for a UN-contracted mine-clearing operation wounded in a suicide attack Monday in the country's violence-hit north, the security ministry and other official sources said.
The attack, claimed by a group linked to Al-Qaeda, took place in the city of Gao at around 8:00 pm (2000 GMT), according to a ministry statement.
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"A loaded 4x4 vehicle exploded in the vicinity of a residential complex," the ministry said, adding that two others were wounded in the blast, which also damaged surrounding homes.
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Mali has been struggling to return to stability after Islamist extremists linked to Al-Qaeda jihadists took control of the north in early 2012, prompting a military intervention by France.
The extremists were routed in the French operation in 2013 but large stretches of the landlocked African state remain out of government control.
A local official said at least two Malian passers-by who lived close to the targeted building had died in the latest attack.
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"Two Cambodians, a South African and a Zimbabwean working for an organisation subcontracted by UNMAS (the UN's mine-clearing operation) were wounded on Monday in a terrorist attack in Gao," a Western diplomatic source told AFP.
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The assault was claimed by the Group to Support Islam and Muslims (GSIM), a fusion of three Malian jihadist groups allied with Al-Qaeda.
Malian and international security forces have been mobilised following the "tragic incident", the security ministry said. (AFP)