Islamic militants attack Malian town close to the border of Mauritania

French troops intervened in Mali in January 2013 but Islamist militants have continued to launch attacks

Islamist insurgents have attacked the Malian town of Nampala near the Mauritanian border, killing at least five people in a dawn raid.

Witnesses said the militants opened fire on soldiers after arriving in pick-up trucks. Other reports said they came on motorbikes and on foot.
One report said Malian soldiers fled the attack; another said troops fought back and clashes lasted several hours.
The militants have been fighting the Malian army for a number of years.
The latest phase of the insurgency began after a French-led military intervention in January 2013, aimed at driving out Islamist militants from towns they had seized in northern Mali and declared to be an "Islamic state".
The French military action dispersed but did not destroy the extremists and sporadic attacks have continued.
Nampala is about 550 kilometres (340 miles) north-east of the Malian capital, Bamako.