BAMAKO (AFP) - The Malian army was Tuesday fighting Tuareg rebels in the northwest after the latest strike by insurgents in the region, an officer said.
"We are currently pushing back a rebel attack not far from Niafounke and this is continuing," lieutenant Ismael Maiga told AFP.
A rebel spokesman in the area, Moussa Salam, also confirmed the clashes.
An official with a non-governmental organisation in the area said the two sides were firing at each other but from a distance.
The rebels, many of whom recently returned from fighting in Libya, have announced a fresh offensive in their quest for greater autonomy for their nomadic desert tribe, and attacked the town of Aguelhoc and other areas in recent weeks.
Bamako has accused Al-Qaeda of backing the rebels, referring to Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and the Azawad National Liberation Movement (MNLA) rebel group.
The clashes, which broke out in the middle of this month, have claimed dozens of lives. About 1,000 people have quit the town of Lere, which was attacked by the rebels, to shelter in neighbouring Mauritania.
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