Mali: 20 peacekeepers wounded in attack on UN base

By Aurore Bonny

LOME, Togo (AA) - Twenty UN peacekeepers were wounded in central Mali in an attack on their base Wednesday, a spokesman for the UN mission announced.

The peacekeepers near the town of Douentza came under direct and indirect fire from unknown assailants at around 7.00 a.m. local time (0700GMT) "in an area of increased jihadist activity," said Olivier Salgado.

Local sources in the West African country report that the wounded belong to the Togolese contingent of the UN Integrated Multidimensional Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA).