A MILITARY training camp on the outskirts of the Malian capital Bamako came under attack by extremists early today.

Gunmen attempted to infiltrate the Faladie gendarme school and a sweep operation is under way, said a statement by the military. It said the situation was under control but asked people to avoid the area.

Mali, along with its neighbours Burkina Faso and Niger, has for over a decade battled an insurgency by armed groups, including some allied with international jihadist organisations al-Qaida and Islamic State. 

Following military coups in all three nations in recent years, the governments have expelled French forces and turned to Russian mercenary units for security assistance instead.

Since taking power in Mali, Colonel Assifmi Goita has fought growing attacks by the jihadists in the centre and north of the country.

In July, al-Qaida ambushed a convoy of Russian mercenaries, killing about 50.

The Russians had been fighting alongside Mali's army against mostly Tuareg rebels when their convoy was forced to retreat into jihadist-controlled territory and attacked south of the commune of Tinzaouaten.

Attacks in the capital are rare. In 2022, gunmen struck a Malian army checkpoint about 37 miles outside the city, killing at least six people and wounding several others.