Al-Shabab attacks African Union base in Somalia

African Union officers in Somalia — Image captionAfrican Union troops in Somalia are supporting the UN-backed government

Al-Shabab militants have overrun an African Union military base in Somalia.

The Islamist group says it has taken "complete control" of the camp and killed more than 60 Kenyan soldiers.

Militants attacked the southern el-Ade base for Somali soldiers before dawn and fighting continued for several hours, Kenya's military spokesman said.

He says Kenyan troops based nearby counter-attacked and fought the insurgents. The number of casualties was not known, he said.

A resident nearby told the BBC by phone that he heard a loud explosion at about 05:30 local time (02:30 GMT), followed by heavy gunfire.

"We then saw an al-Shabab fighter in the town. We also saw Kenyan soldiers who were fleeing from the camp.

"At the moment the camp is in the hands of al-Shabab. We can see military cars burning and dead soldiers all over the place. There are no civilian casualties but most people have fled the town."

African Union troops in Somalia are helping the UN-backed government battle al-Shabab, which is part of al-Qaeda.