09/18/2014 19:03 GMT
BAMAKO, September 18, 2014 (AFP) - Five United Nations peacekeepers from Chad were killed on Thursday when their truck drove over a mine in rebel-infested northeastern Mali, a Chadian military source told AFP.
"We lost five comrades today in the north towards Aguelhok. Their vehicle hit an explosive device. It's terrible," said the officer, who added that four Chadian soldiers were wounded.
The Malian army confirmed the deaths, condemning "a new provocation by terrorists" which it said had taken place as a ceremony in memory of soldiers killed by mines was underway in Aguelhok, 150 kilometres (90 miles) south of the Algerian border, in the restive Kidal region.
The incident comes just two weeks after four Chadian soldiers were killed when they hit a mine, also in Kidal.
The attacks follow the restart of negotiations between the Mali government and six armed rebel groups in the Algerian capital aimed at clinching a lasting peace agreement in the deeply-divided nation.
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