Five Malian soldiers were killed when militants armed with rocket launchers attacked a checkpoint in a central region of the conflict-torn nation, a military source and local official said Monday. "At least five soldiers were killed on Sunday in Mondoro during a jihadist attack," said a source from the Mali army base in Mopti, the largest town in the region, adding that the assailants had also "suffered losses". A local official said the militants had launched the assault "using rocket launchers fired at parked military vehicles". sd/siu/klm/ach