Gunmen attack on Malian army camp, 11 soldiers killed

Armed men on motorcycles have attacked a Malian army camp and killed an unknown number of people near Mali's border with Mauritania.

No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack. Central Mali has in the past few years been overrun by jihadists with links to al Qaeda. The unidentified armed assailants attacked the base in Guire district at 0500 local time (0500 GMT) after approaching in a convoy of 11 vehicles, local lawmaker Niame Keita said.

Army spokesman Diarran Kone said the complex attack took place Sunday morning in the village of Guire. Kone says the military is still working to determine the death toll. Guire resident Souleymane Maiga told The Associated Press at least a dozen people had been killed. It wasn't clear how many of the victims were soldiers. In a statement, the defence ministry confirmed the attack and said 11 soldiers were killed and more were wounded. Keita had earlier said 12 were reported killed.

A similar attack last month left 20 Malian soldiers dead. A coalition of extremist groups linked to al-Qaida eventually said it was behind the attack. Escalating violence led to the resignation last week of the entire Malian government. The authorities have come under fire for failing to beat back militants and disarm militias, after a massacre of 157 villagers by an ethnic vigilante group shocked the nation in March.

Both Mali and neighbouring Burkina Faso have been hit by the spike in hostilities fuelled by Islamist militants seeking to extend their influence over the Sahel, an arid region between Africa's northern Sahara desert and its southern savannas.

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