The UN Security Council should authorize the deployment of 2,000 additional peacekeepers in Mali for the UN mission to be able operate in the country's volatile security situation, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said, dpa reported. The recommendation, which had been circulated at the UN Security Council and was seen by dpa on Thursday, follows the killing of four UN staff members on Wednesday and 12 troops in May amid a rising number of attacks on UN peacekeepers in Mali in recent months. Ban recommended that the council, which is due to renew the mandate of the UN mission to Mali this month, increase the strength of the mission's military component from the current troop ceiling of 11,240 personnel to 13,289 peacekeepers. Currently, 10,407 troops are on the ground, 96 per cent of the authorized number, Ban noted.
