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A suicide vehicle against the Minusma: twelve German soldiers and a Belgian injured (v3)

(B2) It was 6:30 a.m., in Mali, Friday morning (June 25), when a suicide vehicle drove into a temporary operating base blue helmets north of Gao

Minusma Mi8 helicopter in medical evacuation (Minusma 2018- Archives B2)

The event took place near the village of Ichagara, in the municipality of Tarkint, 180 km north of Gao. The military had formed a temporary operating base when a suicide vehicle (SVBIED) exploded.

At least four seriously injured

Twelve German soldiers were wounded, " including three seriously quickly confirmed the Bundeswehr. A Belgian soldier was also Severly injured ", as indicated by the Belgian Minister of Defense, Ludivine Dedonder by tweet. " His family receives help from our social services and psychologists. [...] A second Belgian soldier, present on the scene, was not injured. "The exact circumstances of the attack" are under investigation “, we say on the German side.

Support by German, Chinese and French medical teams

The wounded received medical treatment on the spot, then were transported to military hospitals in Gao by helicopter (a contracted helicopter and a UN Mi8 helicopter). They were taken care of by the medical teams. German, French and Chinese said German Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer. NB: the two bases (Minusma and Barkhane) are co-located in the same area.

A life-threatening injury

The condition of two more seriously injured soldiers is stable assured AKK, who spoke to the press at the end of the afternoon (at 17 p.m., to listen to here in German). As for the third, it is currently operated. We have a special thought for him ". NB: very cautious statement, which supposes a vital emergency.

Repatriation by A400M

The injured were quickly repatriated to Germany, starting with the most serious. An A400M aircraft equipped in medical evacuation and intensive care mode (StratAirMedevac) took off Saturday morning from Wuntstorf indicates the NDR (German television). Management: Gao. He took care of the most seriously injured to repatriate them to Cologne. They were hospitalized in the Bundeswehr hospital in Koblenz. " All are currently in stable condition. “says the ministry. A second A310 plane took care of the other injured and transported them to Stuttgart.

Among them, the Belgian soldier who was then evacuated by ambulance to Brussels. " His state of health is reassuring, so he will be able to leave the hospital shortly and will continue to receive care at home.. indicated the Belgian Defense Minister.

Fifteen injured according to Minusma

In all there is fifteen peacekeepers were injured ” MINUSMA had first announced. There remains therefore a doubt on the exact toll of the attack. Either the nationality of these two other wounded remains to be specified (the principle in multinational operations is that it is the State concerned which communicates first in the event of loss). Either in the end, they were not injured or their injuries were so slight that they are not included in the final assessment.

What is a temporary basis ?

A temporary operational base is usually formed around armored vehicles, arranged in a circle (as is the tradition in the desert or far west) which thus protects the camp. This base had been established for “ secure the passage of the 3rd company of the battalion of the reconstituted Malian army (BAR) en route to Kidal “, specifies the MINUSMA. A company that was attacked the day before by an improvised explosive device (IED).

NB: This is the second vehicle bomb attack in a few days. The French from Barkhane were targeted last Monday (read: Operation Barkhane hit by a suicide vehicle).

(Nicolas Gros-Verheyde)

Updated Saturday 26.6 (details on the A400M departure and fate of the second Belgian soldier present) and Sunday 27.6 (status of repatriations and state of health of the Belgian soldier)

Nicolas Gros Verheyde

Chief editor of the B2 site. Graduated in European law from the University of Paris I Pantheon Sorbonne and listener to the 65th session of the IHEDN (Institut des Hautes Etudes de la Défense Nationale. Journalist since 1989, founded B2 - Bruxelles2 in 2008. EU/NATO correspondent in Brussels for Sud-Ouest (previously West-France and France-Soir).

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