42 Malian troopers killed in suspected Islamist assault

Suspected Islamic State-affiliated militants killed 42 Malian troopers in an assault close to the city of Tessit on Sunday, the Malian military has confirmed.

Mali is dealing with a worsening battle in opposition to armed teams (Photo: AFP | Representative)

Forty-two Malian troopers had been killed and 22 injured in an assault close to the city of Tessit on Sunday, Mali’s authorities mentioned on Wednesday, blaming an Islamic State affiliate.

It was one of many deadliest assaults in recent times for the Malian military, which has been battling a decade-long insurgency by militant teams which have unfold throughout West Africa’s Sahel area.

“The Malian army units of Tessit… reacted vigorously to a complex and coordinated attack by armed terrorist groups, presumably from Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (ISGS), characterised by the use of drones, explosives, car bombs, and artillery,” the federal government mentioned in an announcement.

Soldiers killed 37 combatants throughout a number of hours of heavy combating, it added.

The military had beforehand mentioned that 17 troopers had been killed within the assault and that 9 had gone lacking.

Mali is dominated by a navy junta that overthrew the democratic authorities in 2020, partly over frustration at its failure to rein in violence, however assaults have remained frequent.

An al Qaeda affiliate claimed an assault on the nation’s primary navy base in late July.

READ | Bomb blast in Kabul kills 8, injures greater than 20

— ENDS —