BAMAKO, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- Fourteen Malian soldiers were killed following "two complex terrorist attacks" in central Mali, the Directorate of Information and Public Relations of the Armed Forces (Dirpa) said.
In a statement released Wednesday night, the Dirpa said that the Malian Armed Forces "reacted vigorously to twin complex raid" by the Armed Terrorist Groups (GAT) Tuesday between the towns of Dia and Diafarab, then between Koumara and Macina.
The attacks left 14 soldiers dead, 11 others wounded and one vehicle destroyed on the side of the Malian Armed Forces, while 31 terrorists were killed and one more injured recovered, the Dirpa said. In its response, the Malian Armed Forces used airborne vectors, including drones, operated by the Airborne Special Forces.
In an initial assessment published Wednesday on Twitter, the Dirpa reported three deaths, five injuries and damage to three vehicles on the side of the Malian Armed Forces, against the killings of seven terrorists.
Since 2012, Mali has been engulfed in a deep multi-faceted crisis at the security, political and economic levels. Independence insurgencies, jihadist incursions and inter-communal violence have left thousands dead and hundreds of thousands more displaced in the West African nation. ■