US aid workers leave Mauritania

The American Peace Corps says it has withdrawn more than 100 of its aid workers from Mauritania because of safety and security concerns.

The agency says the volunteers have been moved to neighbouring Senegal and will not be returning.

It said it was potentially dangerous for them to travel in Mauritania.

This month two people were wounded in a suicide attack in the capital, Nouakchott, and in June, al-Qaeda claimed it had killed an American.

The Peace Corps said in a statement: "Although it is the agency's position that the volunteers are relatively safe in their communities and villages, it is potentially dangerous for them to travel safely in the country."

The agency has operated in Mauritania for more than 40 years.