UN Peacekeeper Death in Mali Requires Quick Investigation, Punishment

The members of the UN Security Council called on the government of Mali to swiftly investigate attack on peacekeepers, according to official statement.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The death of a Chinese national who was serving in a UN peacekeeping mission in Mali resulted from a terrorist strike that demands a rapid government response, including the capture and punishment of the attackers, the UN Security Council said in a unanimously approved statement on Wednesday.

"The members of the Security Council called on the government of Mali to swiftly investigate this attack, and bring the perpetrators to justice," the statement said. "They underlines that attacks targeting peacekeepers may constitute war crimes under international law."

China’s Foreign Ministry announced earlier that one of its UN peacekeepers was killed and four others were wounded in an attack on a base in Mali.

Both the United Nations and China said terrorists were responsible for the attack.

Islamic extremists seized much of Northern Mail following a 2012 military coup. A UN peacekeeping mission began the following year.