Rocket attack on UN base in northern Mali

Two UN peacekeepers and a civilian were killed when unidentified persons fired rockets on the base of the UN peacekeeping in Kidal in northern Mali early on Saturday, said a spokesman for the UN.
“They fired rockets from about 4 am at the base MINUSMA,” said Olivier Salgado, deputy chief of communications in the peacekeeping mission.

“We have three dead and four seriously injured.”
Militants attacked and fired rockets on the base of the UN peacekeeping in Kidal in northern Mali on Saturday, causing an undetermined number of casualties, a spokesman for the UN forces in Mali (MINUSMA) said.

“The attack occurred at about 4 am (0400 GMT). Four or five rockets landed inside the base. Many people were injured, but it’s too early for an accurate number,” said the spokesman Olivier Salgado MINUSMA Reuters.

French troops and UN forces trying to stabilize the former French colony, where Islamist militants have attacked a hotel in the capital on November 20 killed 20 people.
Three Islamist militant group al-Qaeda – in the Islamic Maghreb (AQMI), its splinter group al Mourabitoun and Mazin Liberation Front (MLF), – claimed the attack on the Radisson Blu. Analysts say they could be security cooperation.

Northern Mali was occupied by Islamist militants, some links to al-Qaeda, most of them were expelled in 2012 under the leadership of the French military operation, but the violence continues.
Other West African government is also fighting Islamist militants. Boko Haram, a leading such a group in the region, this year expanded their attacks from Nigeria to neighboring countries Niger, Cameroon and Chad.