Seven soldiers were killed and several were wounded in an overnight attack in central Mali, the government said Thursday, in fresh violence in the war-torn West African state. The troops came under fire late Wednesday from "unidentified armed men" in Dioungani, an area in central Mali's volatile Mopti region near the border with Burkina Faso, Mali's army said on Twitter. Mali government spokesman Yaya Sangare said in a statement on Thursday that seven died in the attack and several were injured. On Tuesday, two soldiers were killed in the Mopti region when their convoy hit a roadside bomb. On January 13, French President Emmanuel Macron and the leaders of Sahel states agreed to focus their military efforts on the border region between Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger.

Source: Punch January 23, 2020 19:07 UTC