Three Ivorian peacekeepers from the UN Mission in Mali were killed Wednesday in a jihadist attack on their convoy, a Minusma official said on condition of anonymity.
The information was confirmed by an official of the Malian security services.
UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric had previously reported in New York of one dead and seven injured in the same attack on their convoy in the Timbuktu region.
The attack took place north of Bambara Maoudé, on the axis between Douentza (center) and Timbuktu (north-west), in a region which is one of the hotbeds of the polymorphous violence that is plaguing the Sahel.
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"During a security operation, a Minusma company struck (...) improvised explosive devices before being the target of fire by unidentified armed men,"
Minusma said in a statement.
The response of the peacekeepers prompted the attackers to flee, she said.
"Preliminary reports indicate, however, that following this attack, three peacekeepers died and six others were injured,"
she said.
Minusma, established in 2013, has lost more than 230 of its members, including more than 130 in hostile acts, according to statistical figures from the UN.
It is the deadliest mission for peacekeepers in the world.
With 15,000 men and women, including about 12,000 soldiers according to the UN, it is regularly the target of attacks against its convoys or its positions.
Many of its losses were caused by improvised mines hitting vehicles or immobilizing them in ambushes.
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The attack on the Minusma convoy came on the day of a quarterly meeting of the UN Security Council on Mali and the peace effort in this country which has been in turmoil for years.
In his latest report, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres expressed concern about the deterioration of the security situation.
Over the past three months,
"the security situation has continued to deteriorate (...) especially in the center"
of the country, he noted.