Special forces have freed all remaining hostages from a luxury hotel in Mali that was stormed by terrorists yesterday. Around 10 jihadists attacked a Radisson Blu hotel in the centre of
the country’s capital, Bamako, while shouting ‘Allahu Akbar’ and firing
at security guards. They took around 170 people hostage.
Peacekeepers on the scene have seen 27 bodies, and UN officials say two jihadis have also been killed. He added that UN officials are still helping Malian troops search the hotel.
Supporters of an al Qaeda-affiliated group have claimed responsibility for the attack.
Al Mourabitoun, an African jihadist group made up mostly of Arabs and
Tuaregs, posted a message on Twitter saying they were behind the siege.
The group is based in the desert, and is led by former al Qaeda fighter Mokhtar Belmokhtar.
Around 20 hostages were freed before troops raided the hotel. A small
number of these were released by the attackers, after they proved they
could quote verses from the Koran.
As Malian and French troops moved in, the attackers barricaded themselves on the hotel’s seventh floor.
The terrorists are ‘holding no more hostages’, according to the security minister.
