Mali bus blast kills at least 11 people – hospital source

Explosion stock image. INQUIRER FILES

Bamako, Mali — An explosion on a bus in central Mali killed at least 11 people and injured 53 others on Thursday, according to a hospital source.

The bus hit an explosive device while traveling the road between Bandiagara and Goundaka, in the Mopti area in the early afternoon, a security source said. The region is a hotbed for jihadist violence.

Earlier, police and local sources gave a provisional toll of 10 dead and many seriously injured.

“We have just transferred nine bodies to the clinic. And it’s not over yet,” said Moussa Housseyni of the local Bandiagara Youth Association, adding that they were all civilians.

Mali has long struggled with a jihadist insurgency that has claimed thousands of lives and forced hundreds of thousands from their homes.

Mines and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) are among the jihadists’ weapons of choice. They can explode on impact or be detonated remotely.

A report by the UN mission in Mali MINUSMA found that as of August 31, mines and IEDs had caused 72 deaths. Most of the victims are soldiers – but a quarter is civilians, it said.

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