Three Bangladeshi peacekeepers were injured when a motorcade of a patrol team under Bangladesh Formed Police Unit (BANFPU-2) came under attack by an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) in Mali on Sunday morning.
The Armoured personnel Carrier (APC), which was carrying the policemen, was also damaged in the incident, says a press release issued from police headquarters here on Monday evening.
However, the police headquarters did not disclose identities of the three injured Bangladeshi police peacekeepers.
An Improvised Explosive Device (IED) attack took place on Sunday, 28 May, at around 9:30 am local time in Mali, on the patrol team of the BANFPU-2 assigned to the United Nations Peacekeeping Mission.
Three members of BANFPU-2, Minusma (The United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali), were injured and an APC carrying policemen was damaged in the incident, the press release says.
The incident occurred when the patrol team of the BANFPU-2 reached the remote desert road along the mountains of Gundam-Tongka-Niaphungke Highway, some 15 km off from the Gundam Super Camp in Mali's Timbuktu Region. Several IED blasts have occurred in this area in the past.
The patrol team of BANFPU-2 is approximately 15 km from the Gundam Super Camp in Mali's Timbuktu Region. The incident happened when we reached the remote desert road along the mountains of Gundam-Tongka-Niaphungke Highway. Earlier incidents of several IED blasts have occurred in this area.
Police peacekeepers on patrol duty spotted a suspicious hole in the middle of the road. The IED exploded as they maneuvered past the hole. Due to the intelligence of the police peacekeepers and the APCTs' capability to withstand the high-level explosions, they escaped from greater danger.
It is also to be noted that MINUSMA authorities have highly appreciated the members of BANFPU-2, MINUSMA, Mali as they have performed their peacekeeping duties with utmost professionalism and vigilance.