The Malian army has revealed that 14 Malian troops were killed and 11 were injured in two separate attacks in central Mali, after their vehicles collided with explosive devices.
Aljazeera reported that the attacks happened on Tuesday in areas of central Mali where individuals with ties to al-Qaeda and ISIL frequently target civilians, Malian army, UN peacekeepers, and other foreign forces.
The army said in a statement on Wednesday that 31 rebels were killed as a result of the reinforcements sent in in response to the most recent strikes.
No organization has officially claimed credit for the strikes, and the Reuters news agency was unable to independently authenticate the report.
Since 2012, when armed organizations seized control of a rebellion by Tuareg separatists in the north, Mali has been plagued by conflict.
In spite of a costly international military reaction, the conflict has since expanded to other Sahel countries in West Africa.
French troops left Mali in 2022 after ties between the two nations deteriorated as a result of two coups and the perception that foreign militaries were incapable in quelling rebel activity.
After the suspected deployment of Wagner Group agents from Russia to reinforce government forces, there have also been rising tensions between the UN mission and Mali’s military rulers.
In May 2024, Germany, which has up to 1,400 soldiers in Mali as part of the MINUSMA operation in the north, plans to withdraw those personnel. Germany has been in the country since 2013.
