Gunmen kill three soldiers in attack on checkpoint

Gunmen attacked a checkpoint southwest of the Malian town of Timbuktu overnight killing three soldiers and wounding two others, a soldier in the town said on Wednesday.

There were few further details of the attack, which the soldier, who declined to be identified, said took place at Lere, a town near the border with Mauritania.

A Defence Ministry spokesman confirmed the toll but gave no further details about where or how the attack occurred.

Mali is facing a growing threat from Islamist militant groups including al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb that have staged a series of high profile raids in recent months as numerous attacks on army and United Nations personnel.