Security is set to top the agenda at an African Union summit Monday, after host Mauritania warned of regional security failings in the face of jihadist violence, as French soldiers were targeted in a fresh attack in Mali.
A bombing aimed at French soldiers on patrol in the country’s troubled north killed four civilians and injured over 20 people, including four soldiers, Malian and French officials said.
On Friday, a suicide bombing hit the Mali headquarters of the five-nation force known as G5 Sahel, adding to concerns about how it can tackle the jihadist groups roaming the region.
It was the first attack on the headquarters of the five-nation force, which was set up with French backing in 2017 to fight jihadist insurgents and criminal groups in the vast and unstable Sahel region.
In total, four separate attacks killed 15 people in Mali in three days, as the West African nation prepares to go to the polls on July 29.
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Source: Seychelles News Agency
