(VOVworld) - Nine United Nations peacekeepers from Niger were killed in an ambush in northern Mali on Friday, the deadliest attack on the UN peacekeeping mission in Mali, the UN mission said.

UN peacekeepers in a patrol in Timbuktu, Mali (Photo: Reuters)

The peacekeepers' convoy came under direct attack from unidentified gunmen while traveling in the northeastern region, said a statement issued by the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA). MINUSMA's core task is to support the political process in Mali, in close coordination with the African Union and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).