Bamako, Feb 22 (IANS): Three UN peacekeepers were killed in an artisanal mine explosion in central Mali, the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilisation Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) said.

"A convoy of the MINUSMA Force hit an improvised explosive device (artisanal mine) on February 21. According to preliminary reports, three peacekeepers have died and five others are seriously injured," the UN mission added on Tuesday in a statement, promising to provide further information on the attack.

In January, MINUSMA reported that it had lost four peacekeepers due to 18 attacks since October 3, 2022, in the West African country, Xinhua news agency reported.

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 country.