A local official says gunmen have killed around 20 Niger soldiers guarding a camp of Malian refugees.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the press, said Thursday the assailants targeted a military post near the camp in the Tasara region. He could not say how many gunmen were involved or where they came from. He said that besides the fatalities, three soldiers were injured and had been transported to the town of Tahoua for treatment.

Northern and central Mali remain unstable nearly four years after France led a military intervention to drive out Islamic extremists.

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