Malian soldier killed, 46 injured in crash

A Malian soldier was killed and 46 others were injured Thursday when their military transporter crashed, the army said.

The accident in the capital Bamako "occurred due to a technical fault in the vehicle," said army spokesman Souleymane Maiga.

Of the 46 injured, one was in serious condition, and one soldier died, the army said, after initially announcing that there were two dead.

The army said the truck was on the road leading from the north of the capital to the presidential palace, but gave no further details.

The underfunded, poorly-trained army is involved in a campaign against the remnants of rebel militias linked to Al-Qaeda who were ousted by a French-led international force after occupying northern Mali for 10 months in 2012.

Five Malian soldiers were killed in April last year when their helicopter crashed in the central town of Sevare, with the cause of that accident also given as mechanical failure.

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