Two Soldiers Killed In Mali as Suicide Attacks Continue

Over the weekend, officials confirmed that two Malian soldiers were killed and several others were wounded in a suicide attack near Gao, demonstrating that rebel groups in desert hideouts continue to launch isolated attacks against the French and Malian forces.

The latest suicide attack took place in the village of Hamakouladji, located 40 km (25 miles) north of Gao.  The attack occurred when several militants managed to detonate their explosives as a patrol passed through the village.

Two Malian soldiers and at least two Islamist militants were killed in the attack which occurred on Saturday.  According to Colonel Kassim Goita, a senior commander of Malian troops in the northern town of Gao, the attack took place when soldiers followed a suspect on a motorcycle, which parked next to a vehicle which blew up as they approached.  Colonel Goita further indicated that eight soldiers had been wounded and that clashes were ongoing in the area.

Gao was the first major town to be freed from Islamist control.  It is also the hub for both the French and Malian military operations.  However the town has continued to bear a major brunt of the guerrilla-war fought by militants since they scattered into Mali’s desert and mountains.