Six French soldiers injured in last suicide bombing in Mali

The six were injured in an explosion Friday in the unstable “Three Borders” region between Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger. They were taken to the military hospital in the town of Gao, in northern Mali, and three of them will return to France this weekend.

The six, all members of the French anti-Islamist operation Barkane, were injured in a car bomb explosion, which was reportedly driven by a suicide bombing.

The official military statement indicates that the French soldiers were in an armored personnel carrier, patrolling with members of the Malian armed forces.

The convoy was approached by an unidentified vehicle driven at high speed, and the French maneuvered to block the road to protect the other members of the group.

The driver of the unidentified vehicle then triggered an explosion.

None of the six injured soldiers are seriously injured, although three of them were repatriated on Saturday for additional medical treatment.

This is the third attack targeting French peacekeepers in Mali since the end of December, with five soldiers losing their lives.

The controversy continues over the French airstrike

The French army also announced that the troops had returned to the scene of an airstrike in central Mali to confirm that only the jihadists had been targeted. This follows claims by locals that a wedding had been celebrated.

Controversy erupted over the operation after several residents of the remote village of Bounti said up to 20 people were killed in the attack last Sunday.

Friday morning “a ground mission made up of Barkhane soldiers went to the scene of the French strike carried out on January 3, north of the village of Bounti,” the soldiers said in a statement.

“The information gathered during this mission is in all respects consistent with the analysis and assessment of the situation produced so far,” added Barkhane’s statement.

Conflicting claims surround the helicopter attack

Several villagers had told AFP news agency that a wedding party in Bounti was criticized Sunday by a single unidentified helicopter.

A cultural association that promotes the Fulani ethnic group in Mali said around 20 civilians were killed.

The only armed forces that conduct offensive air operations in Mali are the national army and the Barkhane force.

France said its operation did not involve a helicopter and said Thursday evening that the information available “ruled out the possibility of collateral damage”.

Mali’s defense ministry backed the French account, saying its information showed that “the neutralized targets were confirmed military objectives”, and that “the surroundings observed showed no wedding scene”.

The ministry added that an investigation was opened “to better understand” what had happened.