UPDATE - 12 soldiers killed, 5 wounded in north-central Burkina Faso

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By James Tasamba

KIGALI, Rwanda (AA) - At least 12 soldiers in Burkina Faso were killed Monday morning in an attack on a military unit in north-central Sanmatenga province, local media reported.

The attack on the Yirgou military detachment took place around 5 a.m. local time (0500GMT) and left five other soldiers wounded, state television said, quoting a statement by the Armed Forces of Burkina Faso.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but sources said search operations are underway to find the attackers.

It added that the attackers fled with four pick-up trucks, an ambulance and weapons.

On Saturday, around 10 terrorists were killed by the army in the commune of Pobe-Mengo in the Sahel region, according to local media reports.

Earlier that same day, the reports said five civilians were killed in an attack by unidentified gunmen in Markoye in the same region.

Last month, authorities in Burkina Faso said unidentified armed men killed six gendarmeries and wounded seven others in an attack on a convoy of vehicles returning from a gold mine in the eastern part of the country.

Groups with links to the Daesh/ISIS terror group are known to frequently carry out similar attacks in the country.

Some 480 civilians were killed in attacks orchestrated by insurgents in Burkina Faso between May and August, the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) said last month.

More than 1.4 million people have been forced to flee their homes in Burkina Faso due to the attacks, according to the NRC.