Army repulses attack

Government troops lost three dead and killed 15 assailants on Monday when "a strong column" of unidentified motorised enemy forces attacked an army post in Sare Wali, in the southern region of Kola, army headquarters said. The Army Department of Information and Public Relations, which published the communique, did not identify the enemy troops. However, the reference is most likely to elements of the Mouvement des forces democratiques de Casamance (MFDC) that has been fighting for independence since 1982. The MFDC, which has reached a ceasefire with the outgoing Senegalese government, could not be reached for comment.