Terrorists kill over 30 soldiers in Mali

An army camp in the Malian city of Timbuktu on Monday was under attack by "terrorists" and heavy gunfire was heard, military and local officials and residents told AFP news agency.

"We are dealing with terrorists attacking Timbuktu. We are fighting back," a military source said. "The camp in the city centre has been attacked," the source added.

A local official said: "The terrorists arrived today in Timbuktu with a vehicle packed with explosives. The vehicle exploded near the (military) camp. Shooting is currently continuing."

UN staff were instructed in a message "to take shelter" and "stay away from windows" due to "shooting in the city of Timbuktu".

A resident reported having heard "heavy gunfire in the city" which "seems to come from the side of the (military) camp".

A local journalist speaking by telephone said "the city is under fire". "This morning our city was attacked by terrorist groups. Shots were heard near the military camp and the airport. We all returned home," he said.

The ancient city of Timbuktu, once known as the "city of 333 saints" for the Muslim holy men buried there, was subject to major destruction while under the control of jihadists in 2012 and 2013.

Dozens of soldiers killed

Monday’s attack came after an Al Qaeda-linked group active in West Africa's Sahel region claimed responsibility for a previous attack on a military base on Sunday that two sources said had killed more than 30 soldiers.

More than 400 soldiers have reportedly been killed by terrorists since the start of May in bases and towns in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso.

The JNIM group said in a statement on Sunday that it had seized the base in Boulkessi in central Mali, near the border with Burkina Faso.

The Malian army said it had been forced to pull back.

"Many men fought, some until their last breath, to defend the Malian nation," its statement said, without giving any casualty numbers.

A spokesperson did not respond to a question about the toll, but two security sources said more than 30 soldiers had been killed.

A municipal source at Mondoro, near the base, said the insurgents "cleared the camp" and that there were many dead, Reuters news agency reports.

Recent attacks

Videos shared online showed dozens of insurgents overrunning the base.

JNIM has claimed responsibility for a host of recent attacks in the region.

On May 24, it said it had attacked a base in Dioura, central Mali, killing 40 soldiers.

Last Friday, it said it had seized a base in Sirakorola in southwestern Mali, although the army said it had repelled the attack. It did not provide a toll for that incident either.

In neighbouring Burkina Faso, JNIM claimed attacks on military positions and the town of Djibo in mid-May, in which it said it had killed 200 soldiers.

And in Niger, more than 100 soldiers were killed in two attacks in the Tahoua region on May 24 and the Dosso region on May 26, security sources said.

Neither Burkina Faso nor Niger has published an official death toll.