Mali army says situation under control after attacks on several military positions

Bamako, July 4 (SocialNews.XYZ) The Malian Armed Forces said Saturday that attacks against several military positions in the country earlier in the day were repelled and the situation was "fully under control."

In a statement, the army said the attacked positions were located in Aguelhok, Anefis and Gao in northern Mali, Sevare in the country's central region, as well as Kenioroba, south of the capital Bamako, Xinhua news agency reported.

According to the statement, 20 terrorists riding motorcycles or traveling in armed vehicles were killed in the town of Sevare. In the city of Gao, one soldier was killed and four others were wounded, while six terrorists were killed and one vehicle was destroyed.

The army said aerial and ground clearing operations were still underway.

Earlier in the day, in a brief statement, the army said the attempted attacks targeted the military positions in Aguelhok, Anefis, Gao, Sevare and Kenioroba.

"The situation is being monitored," the army said, without immediately providing details about the suspected attackers, the circumstances surrounding the incidents or any possible casualties.

Mali has faced a volatile security situation for years, with attacks by armed groups occurring frequently, particularly in the northern and central parts of the country.

In April, the country's Defense Minister Sadio Camara was killed in an attack on his residence in the town of Kati, near Bamako, carried out by armed terrorist groups.

Last month the Malian Armed Forces neutralized more than 60 terrorists during operations carried out in the Faya Classified Forest, about 40 km from the capital, Bamako.

According to a statement released by the army, the operations consisted of "surgical strikes" targeting three terrorist gathering points in the forest, which the army described as a refuge area for elements of armed terrorist groups.

The first strike, east of Kassela, neutralized about 20 terrorists and destroyed equipment and logistical assets, the statement said. A second strike in the same area neutralized at least 30 terrorists and destroyed several motorcycles.

A third strike west of Zantiguila, on the edge of the Faya forest, neutralized about 15 terrorists and destroyed motorcycles and other logistical equipment, the army said.

–IANS

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Source: IANS