Thirteen Chadian soldiers, 65 rebels killed in Mali - Chad army

23/02/2013 - 1:01

N'DJAMENA (Reuters) - Thirteen Chadian soldiers and 65 Islamist rebels were killed in heavy fighting in the mountains of northern Mali near the border with Algeria on Friday, Chad's army said.

"The provisional toll is ... on the enemy's side, five vehicles (destroyed) and 65 terrorists killed. We deplore the deaths of 13 of our valiant soldiers," announced a statement from the army general staff read on state radio.

(Reporting by Madjiasra Nako; Editing by Jon Hemming)