Fifteen soldiers killed in Mali attacks - army

The army in Mali says 15 soldiers and three civilians have been killed in co-ordinated attacks in the south-west of the country where a jihadist insurgency is raging.

A statement said the assaults on military camps in Sokolo and near Kalumba were repulsed with almost 50 militants being killed.

A third attack near Mopti caused no casualties.

Mali has seen a decade-long insurgency by militants linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group.

The country's military authorities have begun turning to Russia for help, after rejecting long-standing French support.

This article originally appeared in BBC News

Photo: AFP