By Bakari Guèye, 2 October 2013
Nouakchott — Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) on Monday (September 30th) claimed responsibility for a twin suicide car bombing that killed two civilians and injured six soldiers in Timbuktu.
The attack on the Malian military base was conducted by the AQIM’s „Imaratou Sahra“ (Desert Emirate) battalion, Alakhbar reported, citing an unnamed al-Qaeda spokesman. The terror group claimed to have killed 16 Malian soldiers and destroyed a number of military vehicles during the Saturday attack.
Malian Internal Security Minister General Sada Samaké went to the bombing site the following day to reassure civilians and soldiers of „the commitment of the government to investigate and punish those responsible for these acts“.
„There are failures, we must have the courage to admit it, but… we will take all measures to ensure that the situation is under control,“ General Samaké added in his statement aired by ORTM public television.