armed Jihadists took hostage 170 people in a hotel in the capital of Mali, and the rescue operation launched seven hours later he started the attack ended with 40 people -27 of them among employees and customers and 13 attackers, all killed by an African country forces command.
A group of men broke this morning at the luxurious Radisson Blu, located in the heart of Bamako and often frequented by foreign-military, aid workers, diplomats who negotiate or cooperate in the troubled northern Mali, where they operate Tuareg separatists and Islamist groups.
According to figures from the Mission UN in Mali (Minusma), killed 27 civilians and 13 attackers since the attack began, but the Malian government only reported 22 dead civilians and two attackers, after announcing that hostage-taking was over, the news agency he reported . EFE
the attack was claimed by two active jihadist groups in the Sahel: Al Murabitun, headed until his death in May by the Algerian Mokhtar Belmokhtar, and Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQMI), which claimed have acted together in a call to the news agency Al-Akhbar.
police sources said the 13 assailants robbed this morning a US diplomatic vehicle in which they were presented in the hotel and had access to their facilities , generally frequented by foreigners.
and pointed out that the armed jihadists entered the hotel shouting "Allahu Akbar" (God is great in Arabic) and declared that all -customers present, workers and guards hotel, of various nationalities as Americans, Chinese, Belgian, Pakistani and German, among others who were kidnapped.
hostage-taking lasted seven hours. Before the release operation forces Malian security occurred, the attackers released some hostages, including those who were able to recite verses from the Koran, while others managed to escape.
Police cordoned off the area near the hotel, which was overflown by helicopters Minusma and the Malian army, while around the fenced area many people who cheered at the sight of reach military special forces to free the hostages gathered.
Malian soldiers were assisted in the operation by special forces of the French Gendarmerie sent from Paris, plus US troops in Mali and soldiers of the Nigerian contingent Minusma.
the assault on the hotel began by in the afternoon, seven hours after the arrival of the kidnappers, and for hours could hear heavy gunfire inside the hotel, which killed 27 hostages (several of them Westerners, but not their nationalities known) and . 13 assailants
the hostages were evacuated after the operation were led assault on UN ambulances to a nearby sports hall to receive first aid; some of them left the bloodied hotel and apparently in serious condition, reported EFE.
The bodies of the dead were removed from the hotel and taken to an unknown location, while the Scientific Police working to identify them.
among those killed in the attack an official at the Belgian parliament who had attended a convention in Mali is.
from France, still reeling from the deadly attacks last week in Paris that left 129 dead of 19 nationalities , President Francois Hollande said his country will do "everything possible to free the hostages" in Mali, an ex gala colony.
airline Air France said 12 of its workers, who were staying in the hotel, and are in a safe place, while the Turkish government said five of seven officials from Turkish Airlines had also managed to flee
the state news agency Xinhua said three of the 10 Chinese tourists trapped inside had been rescued.
the attacks are a slap in the face for France, which has committed 3,500 troops in northern Mali to try to restore stability after a Tuareg rebellion 2012 later was kidnapped by jihadists linked to al Qaeda.
Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, who was visiting in N'Djamena, had to interrupt his trip and return immediately to Bamako.
before boarding the plane said the situation was "worrying but not hopeless" and emphasized that no country is safe from extremist threat.
is expected to Keita tonight a speech to the nation where is expected to announce measures to curb the activity of jihadist, only this year have carried out three similar attacks in entertainment establishments frequented by Westerners.
the first was in March, when a restaurant Bamako it was attacked by masked with grenades and machine guns, killing five dead; then he followed the taking of a hotel in Mopti (north), where there were seven dead, including two militants, after a very long journey of almost 24 hours.
Those two attacks were claimed by two jihadist groups, just like today, showing that Mali remains highly vulnerable to the activity of these commands is believed to be hiding in northern areas without fixed bases, and taking advantage of the porous borders country neighbors.
Source: Telam