A suicide bomber has attacked and killed a Malian soldier in the historic city of Timbuktu, the Malian army told reporters yesterday.

The Malian military said the attacker set off an explosive belt inside a car which had been stopped at a checkpoint near the airport.

This is the first suicide attack in Timbuktu since French-led forces ousted Islamist militants from the city in January.

But the French army says it also killed at least 10 militants in a later attack although local reporters are yet to report on such incident happening.

The French government says it is still trying to verify claims by al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) that it had executed French hostage Philippe Verdon on 10 March, in retaliation for France’s intervention in Mali.

President Francois Hollande said the military operation was in its last phase and that Mali was few days away from regaining its territorial integrity from the militants.

But many ordinary Malian citizens remained skeptical about assurances that the north of the country is safe and the country regaining its territorial integrity.

The Timbuktu car bombing is likely to vindicate their view and further delay the return of civil servants who are needed if schools, town halls and those who have fled the conflict.

Their military campaign has focused in recent weeks on the remote Ifoghas Mountains near the Algeria border, where the militants are believed to have fled after losing control of the main cities.

Statistically, at least 26 Chadian, 5 French soldiers and one Malian soldier had died in combat in Mali since their deployment to combat the militants.

Issaka Adams / NationalTurk Africa New