Originally posted by the Voice of America.
Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America,
a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in
the public domain.


               Suicide Bomber Attacks Mali Checkpoint; 1 Wounded

   Mali military officials say a suicide bomber has blown himself up near
   group of soldiers, the first time rebels have resorted to the tactic
   since the French counter-offensive began in that country last month.
   Officials say one soldier was wounded when the suicide bomber
   approached on a motorcycle and detonated his explosives at a Mali
   military checkpoint near the northern city of Gao Friday.
   French-backed Malian forces have faced a rising level of resistance
   from Islamist rebels in northern Mali in recent days, after taking
   control of the region last month.
   Earlier this week, Malian and French forces came under rocket fire
   attack in Gao. Four Malian soldiers also were killed when their vehicle
   hit a landmine in the area Wednesday.
   France is seeking to begin the process of handing over its
   four-week-old intervention to United Nations peacekeepers. But
   officials say any transfer will have to wait until Mali`s security
   situation stabilizes.
   Diplomats have said privately that a U.N. Security Council resolution
   authorizing a peacekeeping operation for Mali is not likely before the
   end of February. It could take another two months after that to
   transition the African forces into U.N. peacekeepers.
   The Mali crisis began in early 2012 when the Tuareg separatist group
   MNLA launched a rebellion in the north. The MNLA and Islamist militants
   seized control of the north in April but the MNLA was soon swept aside
   as the militants imposed harsh Islamic law on the region.
   At the request of Mali`s government, French forces entered the country
   last month to drive back the al-Qaida-linked militants who had begun
   moving in the direction of the capital, Bamako.
     __________________________________________________________________

   [1]http://www.voanews.com/content/suicide-bomber-attacks-mali-checkpoin
   t-1-wounded/1599610.html

References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/suicide-bomber-attacks-mali-checkpoint-1-wounded/1599610.html