Unknown Gunmen Kills two Peace Keepers in Mali

 BY: News Peddlers

According to mission head El-Ghassim Wane, an unidentified gunman shot and killed two officers from the UN peacekeeping mission in Mali while they were on patrol near the city of Timbuktu.

"I condemn this heinous act and wish the four other injured peacekeepers a speedy recovery," Wane said in a tweet on Friday.

The United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) "strongly condemned" the fatal attack.

"On December 16, a United Nations police patrol was attacked in Timbuktu [northern Mali]. Two of our officers, including a woman, were killed, and four others were injured, one seriously," MINUSMA said in a tweet.

Since 2012, Mali has been dealing with an armed rebellion. Thousands have died, and hundreds of thousands have fled their homes.

The future of MINUSMA's peacekeeping mission is in jeopardy as violence erupts in the African country's centre, north, and east.

Between 2020 and 2021, Mali experienced two military coups.

Following the alleged arrival of Russian Wagner Group fighters to bolster the government's forces, tensions between the UN mission and Mali's military rulers have risen.

Germany announced on Thursday that its forces will remain in Mali as part of the MINUSMA deployment until 2024, but only if the military government allows them to operate freely and elections are held.

According to Berlin, Germany has approximately 1,100 troops in Mali. It is the seventh country in recent months to decide to withdraw or suspend its participation in the UN mission.