Seven Malian soldiers were killed on Saturday in two separate attacks on patrols in the centre-west of the country, the army said, the latest bloodshed to indicate violence is shifting southward into previously peaceful areas.

At around 11:20 GMT an army escort was ambushed near the town of Mourdiah, around 200 km (120 miles) north of the capital Bamako, killing two and injuring three, the army said in a statement published on Facebook.

Veronic Njie has the details.