In the West African country Mali, clashes between armed groups near the northern city of Gao left at least one person dead and a dozen injured, and the local airport was closed after being hit in a jihadist attack. AFP reports that fighting erupted yesterday between the towns of Tessit and Intillit among unidentified militias.<br/><br/>The combattants were believed either to be aligned with the ex-rebel Azawad movement or with an ethnic Touareg group called Imghad or its pro-government ally. The UN mission to Mali announced that Gao airport, a key transport hub, had been shut down following a jihadist suicide attack on Tuesday night.<br/><br/>A car bomb destroyed prefabricated hangars used by the mission's aircraft, the Mission said in a statement. The attack was claimed by the Algerian jihadist group of Mokhtar Belmokhtar.