UN peacekeepers killed in Mali explosion

At least three United Nations soldiers were killed and five others seriously wounded by an explosive device that detonated as they were escorting a convoy in Mali, according to the West African nation's peacekeeping mission.

The convoy was travelling between the towns of Anefis and Gao in Mali's volatile north when the explosion occurred at around 07:00 GMT, a statement from the mission, MINUSMA, said, adding that the death toll was provisional.

The UN did not immediately release the nationalities of the soldiers. Despite a 2013 French-led military intervention that drove back armed groups - some with links to al-Qaeda - who seized control of Mali's desert north a year earlier, the area remains plagued by violence.

UCJ, UNILORIN.