Atleast 20 peacekeeping force soldiers have been injured in Mali, according to a UN spokesperson. They were in their base in Kerena, when unidentified militant group attacked the base at 7am on Wednesday.  The base was “targeted by direct and indirect fire” as per Olivier Saldago, UN’s Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission (MINUSMA) mission spokesperson said.  United Nations MINUSMA is known to be the UN’s deadliest peacekeeping mission in Mali. It was established in 2013 with the intent to stabilise the country post Tuareg rebellion of 2012. 

The injured soldiers in the latest attack were from a Togolese contingent of peacekeepers, according to an official briefed on the matter, who requested anonymity. Approximately 230 soldiers have died since the inception of the mission. 

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The area where the recent attack was carried out has also recently seen a surge in violence ever since Al-Qaeda affiliated jihadists attacked the camps there. 10 troops of Mali were killed in this attack. 

Central Mali is also one of the epicentres of the regional conflict, where attacks on soldiers and ethnic killings are common.