Four Mali soldiers killed in twin attacks, army says

Bamako – The army reported on Monday that four Malian troops were killed in separate suspected terrorist strikes, two in the east and two in the center of the country.

The army said it “recorded two dead and seven wounded” during an ambush in central Boni, while 13 attackers were slain and two “terrorists” were captured.

An attack on an outpost left “two dead and ten wounded” at Tessit, close to the Burkina Faso and Niger borders.

The military said it “vigorously repelled the attack”.

“Nine dead (attackers) were counted on the spot and several wounded terrorists were intercepted and annihilated by an aerial intervention,”

“The sweep continues at full speed to clear these sectors.”

The state has no control over two-thirds of Mali’s territory.

Jihadists linked to al-Qaeda or the Islamic State are spreading further south, into Ivory Coast and Benin.

Thousands of civilian and military casualties, as well as hundreds of thousands of displaced people, have come from jihadist activity paired with communal violence, crime, and army atrocities.

In recent months, the Malian army has claimed to have killed scores of militants.

“Fear (had) shifted sides, the enemy is on the run towards the frontiers or hiding among the civilian,” according to a recent statement.