Five killed in Mali attack

Since 2012, West African state has been rocked by insurgency led by groups linked to Al Qaeda

At the time of the attack, the Malian Army was conducting an operation in the Koutiala area, near the border with Burkina Faso. AFP

Five people, including customs officers and civilians, were killed in an attack at a checkpoint in south-east Mali on Saturday, local and military sources said.

While a military source told AFP a "terrorist attack" had killed seven civilians and customs officers at the Koutiala checkpoint, a local councillor put the death toll at five. More are feared dead.

Neither source provided the breakdown of the civilian and customs officers involved.

"The enemies also suffered losses," the military source said, adding the situation was under control.

At the time of the attack, the Malian Army was conducting an operation in the Koutiala area, near the border with Burkina Faso.

Since 2012, Mali has been rocked by a extremist insurgency led by groups linked to Al Qaeda and ISIS.

The violence began in the north, then later spread to the centre and to neighbouring Burkina Faso and Niger. Inter-communal and criminal violence is also common.

The country has been run by a military junta since August 2020, when colonels angered at failure to defeat the extremists deposed the country's elected leader, Ibrahim Boubacar Keita.

They staged a second de-facto coup in May 2021, but reiterated a promise to hand back control by February 2022. That timeline was recently pushed back by two years.