Ninety-five people in a central Malian village inhabited by the Dogon community were killed by gunmen in an overnight attack.

An official in Koundou district where the village of Sobane-Kou is located said bodies of some residents were burned and they are continuing to look for others.

A Malian security source at the site of the massacre, said a Dogon village has been virtually wiped out.

The local official said the attackers came and started shooting, pillaging and burning the village of about 300 inhabitants.

Reports say the attack began when a predominantly Fulani jihadist group, led by preacher Amadou Koufa surfaced in the region, and started targeting the Bambara and Dogon ethnic groups.

On May 16 the UN mission in Mali, announced it had recorded at least 488 deaths in attacks on Fulanis, in the central regions of Mopti and Segou since January 2018.