BAMAKO (Reuters) - Armed men attacked a village in the southern Mali region of Sikasso close to the border with Ivory Coast on Sunday, defence ministry spokesman Colonel Diaran Kone told Reuters.

The attack came a day after suspected Islamist fighters attacked a town in western Mali near the border with Mauritania, leaving 12 people dead, including three soldiers and nine attackers. [ID:nL5N0ZD0DR]

A senior military official blamed the western attack on a group of ethnic Peuhls they said were infiltrated by fighters believed to be linked to al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.

"The attack is confirmed. The operations are underway," Kone said of Sunday's attack at Fakola village. He gave no details. A military source said the attackers at Fakola may be the same group who attacked Misseni village in Sikasso this month.

A relatively small Peuhl armed group called the Massina Liberation Front is suspected to have clashed with government troops in the central Mopti region this month, has been blamed for staging some recent attacks. [ID:nL5N0Z34O2]

This month northern rebel alliance led by ethnic Tuaregs signed a peace deal with the government aimed at ending their uprising and allowing the authorities to focus on fighting Islamist militants.