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Two Nigerian police officers from the United Nations mission in Mali were killed Friday in an attack in Timbuktu, in the north of the country. They were patrolling the city when they were shot by their assailants.
With our correspondent in New York, Carrie Nooten
In the streets of Timbuktu, an unidentified armed individual opened fire on a patrol of the Minusma killing two policemen, a man and a woman both from Nigeria. Four other officers were injured, one seriously.
In their flight, the attackers came across a patrol of the Malian armed forces. An attacker and a Malian soldier died following exchanges of fire.
Deeply shocked by the murder this afternoon, at #Timbuktu, by 1 unidentified armed individual, of 2 of our police officers, including 1 woman, while they were on patrol. I condemn this heinous act and wish a speedy recovery to the 4 other injured peacekeepers.
– El-Ghassim Wane (@elghassimw) December 16, 2022
A Minusma rapid reaction force was dispatched to the scene to secure the area 30 minutes after the attack and a ceremony in town attended by Mossa Ag Attaher, the Minister of Youth and Sports, was cut short.
If the Minusma is one of the usual targets of the jihadists, this did not prevent the head of the mission from declaring himself ” deeply shocked by this murder “. He also recalled that attacks against blue helmets can constitute war crimes under international law.
With more than 180 of its members dead in hostile acts, Minusma is the UN mission that has suffered the most losses in recent years.