A suicide bomber killed two Senegalese UN peacekeepers and destroyed the only operating bank in the northern Malian town of Kidal yesterday, one day before a second round of parliamentary elections.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the car bombing at 8.45am on the Malian Solidarity Bank, which was being guarded Mali’s army and the UN peacekeeping mission known as MINUSMA.

Some fighters linked to al-Qaeda are still holding out in the north nearly a year after the start of a French offensive aiming to drive them from the desert region they occupied for most of 2012 after hijacking a Tuareg separatist rebellion.

“A car bomb targeted MINUSMA forces and the Malian army who were guarding the building of the Malian Solidarity Bank in the centre of Kidal,” said a statement by MINUSMA, which condemned the attack.

A vehicle in front of the bank is in flames after the explosion

“The explosion caused the death of two Senegalese blue helmets and also caused a number of serious injuries among the ranks of the Malian national guard and MINUSMA,” the statement said.

Body parts were strewn over 100 metres by the force of the blast, national radio said.

“A vehicle in front of the bank is in flames after the explosion. There is a huge amount of black smoke in the sky hanging over the town,” resident Ibrahim Maïga said. Another resident, Youssouf Touré, said the bank was reduced to rubble.

It was not clear whether the bank was open for business at the time. A military source said MINUSMA troops were guarding the outside of the bank while the Malians protected the inside.