A senior commander of AQIM, al- Qaida's branch in north Africa, was killed during a French military operation in northern Mali, a TV station reported on Thursday.

Algerian television Ennahar monitored here said that Abou Zeid, a senior commander of AQIM, al-Qaida's branch in north Africa, was killed with some 40 militants in northern Mali after French troops' operation.

Last week, Malian Prime Minister Diango Cissoko announced that large-scale military operations in his country "are coming to an end."