MINUSMA strongly condemns the violence that took place yesterday in Kidal prior to the scheduled arrival of the Prime Minister and a Government delegation.

The Mission deplores the fact that, despite a security plan coordinated by the Malian Government on Wednesday in cooperation with MINUSMA and supported by Serval, incidents of a serious nature took place.

MINUSMA, in close cooperation with Serval, assisted the evacuation of three of the injured for medical care in Gao.

MINUSMA calls for restraint and a return to the negotiating table to continue discussions toward a solution in accordance with Security Council Resolution 2100 (2013) and the commitments made, including on security and investigation arrangements, in the Ouagadougou Preliminary Agreement.