Two UN peacekeepers killed by mine in Mali

26 Jan 2019; DW: Two Sri Lankan peacekeepers with the UN's force in Mali have been killed and six others injured when their vehicle hit an explosive device in the central Mopti region, the UN said Friday.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the Security Council condemned the attacks.

"The secretary-general recalls that attacks targeting United Nations peacekeepers may constitute war crimes under international law," his office said in a statement.

No group has claimed credit for the attacks, but they bore all the marks of al-Qaida linked militants operating in the Sahel region. 

The 15,000-strong UN mission in Mali (MINUSMA) has been deployed in the West African country since 2013 to support stabilization and a political transition and to counter jihadi militants. It is the UN's deadliest peacekeeping mission, with nearly 180 peacekeepers killed.

The latest casualties come after militants linked to al-Qaida attacked a UN camp on Sunday, killing 10 peacekeepers from Chad and wounding 25 others. It was one of the deadliest attacks on the UN mission to date.

Click the link to read remaining content: https://www.dw.com/en/two-un-peacekeepers-killed-by-mine-in-mali/a-47243991