UN Peacekeeping Mission Accelerates Withdrawal from Mali’s Ber Town Due to Worsening Security Conditions.
The UN’s peacekeeping mission in Mali, known as Minusma, has made the decision to expedite its departure from the northern town of Ber due to the increasingly precarious security environment.
In an official statement shared on X (formerly known as Twitter), the UN mission appealed to all relevant parties to avoid actions that could further complicate the ongoing situation.
However, it has been reported that the UN convoy in the process of withdrawing faced two separate attacks. As a result, three individuals who sustained injuries were promptly transported to Timbuktu for medical care.
The UN emphasized that assaults targeting peacekeeping personnel might potentially be classified as war crimes as per international law.
These developments followed an announcement by the Malian Armed Forces (FaMa), revealing that a minimum of seven soldiers had lost their lives while eight others sustained injuries during clashes with former rebels affiliated with the Coordination of Movements of Azawad (CMA).
Malian troops issued a separate statement asserting that they had successfully neutralized 28 rebels and taken control of Ber as part of the transition process involving sites previously held by the UN peacekeeping unit.
Notably, the statement did not acknowledge the allegations from ex-separatists who accuse the Malian army of aiming to occupy Minusma positions within CMA-administered areas. This assertion is considered a breach of the Algiers peace agreement of May 2014.
