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18 UN troops and 2 civilians injured attack in Mali mortar attack

WION Web Team
New Delhi, Delhi, IndiaUpdated: Jan 09, 2020, 11:28 PM IST
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File photo. Photograph:(AFP)

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Since 2012, Mali is struggling to contain an Islamist insurgency. The crisis has claimed thousands of military and civilian lives since.  

In preliminary toll of a mortar attack on a military base in northern Mali, eighteen United Nations' troops and two civilians were injured, news agency AFP reported on Thursday.

Since 2012, Mali is struggling to contain an Islamist insurgency. The crisis has claimed thousands of military and civilian lives since.  

An internal UN report seen by AFP said 15 mortar rounds landed "inside and around" the military base in Tessalit, in northern Mali close to the border with Algeria. 

Camp personnel took shelter in a bunker, the report said, adding that two Malian civilians were wounded in the section of camp harbouring French soldiers. 

Some 4,500 French troops are deployed in the Sahel region, while the UN has a 13,000-strong peacekeeping force in Mali.

The Tessalit camp hosts a battalion of troops from Chad, as well French troops.

(With inputs from agencies)