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More than 50 people were killed near the northeastern Mali city of Gao on Friday after armed attackers ambushed a convoy guarded by his army, a local official and residents said.
The attack took place near the village of Kobe, about 30 kilometers (19 miles) from Gao in an area where Islamic State and Al Qaeda groups have been operating for more than a decade, destabilizing Mali and its neighbors Burkina Faso and Niger.
“People jumped out of cars to run. There were many dead and injured civilians,” a local official said on Saturday, speaking on condition of anonymity due to security concerns.
At least 56 bodies were recorded at Gao hospital, the official said, adding that there were also an unknown number of wounded soldiers.
The Malian army has not said anything so far.
A resident of Gao also said about 50 people were killed and vehicles were burned. The deadly attacks have been frequent, and the army is forced to escort civilian vehicles almost every day, the resident said.
The rebellion began in the arid northern part of Mali following a rebellion by Tuareg separatists in 2012. The Islamist militants have spread to other countries in the impoverished Sahel region south of the Sahara.
The attacks have killed thousands of people and contributed to a humanitarian crisis in which more than 3.2 million people have fled their homes as of January, according to the International Organization for Migration.
By: BBC
