Six soldiers killed in central Mali

By James Tasamba

KIGALI, Rwanda (AA) - Six Malian soldiers were killed and several others wounded in an attack overnight in central Mali, the military said Thursday.

The attack took place overnight in an area near the border with Burkina Faso.

“Malian armed forces were attacked by unidentified gunmen in the Dioungani area located 52 kilometers (32 miles) from Koro in the Mopti region. Six soldiers were killed and others wounded,” the statement said.

The Sahel countries of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger have been particularly targeted by recurrent attacks attributed to al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and Daesh/ISIS.

On Tuesday, two Malian soldiers were killed when their convoy hit a roadside bomb in Mopti.

Roughly 140 Malian soldiers were reportedly killed in attacks between September and December.

At least 36 people were killed in Burkina Faso when terrorists attacked a market in the central-northern province of Sanmatenga late Monday.

French Defense Minister Florence Parly announced Monday that new military operations are set to be launched in the border zone between Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, where France and its allies intend to refocus their efforts against extremists.

It is one of the resolutions from a recent summit between French President Emmanuel Macron and his G5 Sahel counterparts from Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso and Mauritania held in Pau city in southwestern France to discuss the security situation in the Sahel region.