PHNOM PENH, Nov. 14 (Xinhua) -- Four Cambodian civilians working for the UN's mine-clearing operation were among the victims in a suicide attack in the conflict-torn West African nation of Mali, a defense ministry spokesman said on Wednesday.

"One Cambodian was seriously wounded and three others sustained minor injuries," Chhum Socheat, a spokesman for the Ministry of Defense, said in a statement.

He said the seriously wounded victim were rushed to the Chinese peacekeeping Level 2 Military Hospital in the city of Gao, while the slightly injured persons were admitted to a nearby hospital.

According to the spokesman, the vicinity of a UN's residential complex in Gao was attacked Monday night in a car bomb blast, killing a suicide bomber, two Malian people, and leaving 14 others injured.

Socheat said the Cambodian military personnel who were on mission in Gao had not been hurt in the terrorist attack.

The attack was claimed by a group linked to al-Qaida.

Mali was plunged into turmoil after Islamist extremists linked to al-Qaida jihadists took control of the north in March 2012, and France launched a military operation in January 2013 to oust them.

Cambodia has sent troops to join a UN peacekeeping force in Mali since 2014. Currently, 309 Cambodian peacekeepers are on a mission in the country.