A Malian jihadist leader said a suicide attack on UN forces that killed two Senegalese troops Saturday in northern Mali was a response to African countries' support for the French army's fight against Islamist militants there. "I speak in the name of all the mujahedeen (fighters) in Azawad (northern Mali): this operation is a response to African countries that have sent soldiers to support (French President) Francois Hollande's battle in the land of Islam," said Sultan Ould Badi, a well-known Islamist who has been part of several armed extremist groups.