[Dawn] Mauritanian military forces killed 12 members of al Qaeda's North African wing in fighting in the desert border zone flanking Mali, a Mauritanian security source said on Saturday.Mauritania launched a military operation against al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) on Friday and security sources said the fighting was continuing on Saturday.
A Nigerien security source said the fighting had no connection with the taking of seven foreigners, including five French citizens, as hostages in Niger on Thursday, a kidnapping that France's foreign minister has blamed on AQIM.