UNITED NATIONS, June 11 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday condemned the attack by armed elements the day before on a UN peacekeeping mission patrol in the Central African Republic (CAR), which killed one peacekeeper and wounded another.

In a statement through his spokesperson, Guterres said the killing of the Burundian peacekeeper brought to five the number of peacekeepers killed in targeted attacks in the CAR since January 2018, with two attacks occurring in the span of a week.

The UN chief reaffirmed his "unwavering" support to the mission in the CAR, or MINUSCA, in its efforts to protect civilians and stabilize the country.

He recalled attacks against UN peacekeepers might constitute a war crime and that sanctions could be applied against the perpetrators, urging the CAR authorities to investigate and identify the perpetrators so that they could be brought to justice.

Guterres offered his "deepest" condolences to the family of the killed as well as to the Burundian government, and wished a swift recovery to the injured.