Mali: UN mission vacates base earlier than planned

The UN peacekeeping mission Minusma in Mali has brought forward its withdrawal from a base located in the north of the country. The Minusma force is leaving the base in the town of Ber earlier due to the "deterioration of the security situation in the region and the high risks it poses to our blue helmets," Minusma said Sunday on the online Twitter service, which has been renamed "X." On Saturday, the Malian army had said that six soldiers had been killed in a skirmish with "armed terrorist groups" in the region around Ber. Minusma called on the "different actors" to refrain from "any act" that could "complicate" the withdrawal. The withdrawal of the blue helmets stationed in Ber had actually been planned by the end of the year