Suspected Islamists kill seven and take hostages in Mali hotel

Several hostages, including a number of foreigners, were caught in a standoff in central Mali Friday after gunmen stormed a hotel during a shootout with soldiers that killed at least five troops and two attackers, the government said. Mali’s army continued to surround the Hotel Byblos in Sevare north of Bamako, battling militants into the evening. A Russian and a Ukrainian were among those being held inside the Byblos Hotel, officials from their countries said. There were up to eight other captives and South African and French citizens had also been staying there, government officials said.

The armed men have withdrawn inside the hotel and have taken the people inside hostage.

Colonel Souleymane Maiga

Mali’s government and the U.N. mission in Mali both condemned the attack. Northern Mali fell under the control of jihadists back in 2012 but a French-led offensive ousted them from power in early 2013. Remnants of the group have staged a number of attacks on U.N. peacekeepers and Malian forces though Friday’s assault on a hotel known to be popular with U.N. pilots marks a serious escalation. Sevare and the nearby town of Mopti in central Mali have long been the heart of the country’s tourism industry and had been spared from the attacks more common in the northern towns of Gao and Timbuktu.

The army is there at the site and we are looking for a solution that will preserve human life.

Colonel Souleymane Maiga