A car bomb has exploded in the northern Malian city of Kidal, killing seven people instantly and leaving many injured.

The attack was believed to have carried out by a suicide bomber which local reports say also died in the attack.

It is also believe that the attack was staged by the Islamist extremist group the Movement for Jihad in West Africa which says France is an enemy and whoever supports France’s intervention in Mali automatically also becomes an enemy.

The attack is thought to have targeted a checkpoint guarded by a Tuareg group which has come out in support of France’s military intervention in the country political crisis.

The MNLA (Tuareg group) was originally allied with Mali’s militant Islamist groups when they seized control of northern Mali in April 2012 but it later fell out with them and backed the French-led offensive to drive them out.

The attack happened yesterday late in the evening as powerful car bomb exploded at a checkpoint in Kidal belonging to the secular Tuareg MNLA.

A statement from the Tuareg group said seven MNLA fighters had been killed as well as the suicide bomber who detonated the explosive device with the truck.

Islamist militants were driven out of Kidal and other strongholds but have continued to stage raids and bombings in a very tactical way.

A senior UN humanitarian official was quoted by France24 TV as saying that hundreds of thousands of displaced Malians are too afraid to return home.

More than 430,000 people who fled the militant takeover of northern Mali last year did not feel confident enough to return to their homes despite the security situation improving, said John Ging, from the UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

Those who had stayed feared the conflict was not yet behind them, he added, amid reports of amputations and rape carried out by militants against women and children.

Mr. Ging said he had told Mali’s government it should show it could protect civilians and secure cities in order for people to feel safe enough to come back.

When French troops seized Kidal’s airport a month ago, the MNLA took control of the town itself and promised to help restore law and order making them now a prime target for the Islamist Fighters.

Two people died in car bomb attacks in Kidal last week. The town is close to the Ifoghas Mountains, where members of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) are thought to be hiding.

Clashes in the area, close to the Algerian border, led to the deaths of 13 Chadian soldiers and dozens of militants at the end of last week.

Issaka Adams / NationalTurk Africa News

[adrotate banner=”41″]