Gunmen Take 170 People Hostage in Mali Hotel Attack
Military spokesman says three dead; raid to rescue hostages has begun
Gunmen took 170 people hostage on Friday morning at a hotel in Bamako, the capital of Mali, a West African nation where French troops are at war with al Qaeda militants. At least three people were killed, the military said.

Authorities were raiding the Radisson Blu hotel to try to rescue the hostages. The Brussels-based Rezidor Hotel Group, which operates the hotel, said two gunmen were holding 30 of its workers and 140 of its guests inside.

A Mali military spokesman said three people had been killed in the attack, but did not elaborate on the specific circumstances or their identities.

The attack began with a burst of gunfire after 6 a.m. local time, said Amadou Keita, a driver for the Acte Sept cultural center across the street, where he was holed up with three colleagues.

The attackers drove up to the hotel, a popular spot for foreigners and expatriates, in a small car with what appeared to be diplomatic license plates, and then gunned down a guard who had been at the hotel’s gate, Mr. Keita said.

After police arrived, they encircled the hotel and told those in neighboring buildings to stay inside.

In France, President François Hollande said that his country was available for help to resolve the hostage situation, and said he was in contact with Malian authorities.

“With the means we have in the area, we will do what is possible to obtain the freedom of the hostages,” Mr. Hollande said. “Once again, terrorists want to mark with their barbaric presence all places where they can kill or massacre.”

Air France said that an entire team of two pilots and 10 crew were safe, and that it was canceling flights to Bamako. The Belgian foreign ministry said four Belgians were among the hostages, but that it couldn’t confirm anything about their status.


Official broadcaster China Central Television said on its verified Weibo social-media account that about 10 Chinese nationals are trapped in the hotel and are employees of companies in Mali backed by Chinese investors. It didn’t specify what kind of companies.

It said the Chinese nationals haven’t been harmed and that officials from China’s embassy in Mali were in touch with them.

The embassy posted a notice to its website warning Chinese in the country to take extra safety precautions. “Reduce unnecessary trips outside and avoid going to the above mentioned area, or other areas with large numbers of people,” the notice said.

The U.S. embassy asked its citizens to stay indoors.

In the wake of last week’s terrorist attacks in Paris, Mr. Hollande has said his country is at war “with jihadist terrorism that threatens the whole world” and has worked to build a bigger coalition to fight Islamic State.

The country, which has the biggest military in Western Europe, has already been pressing military interventions to fight Islamist radicals.

The biggest of France’s existing overseas commitments is called Operation Barkhane and aims to disrupt Islamic extremists in the region running from Mauritania to Chad.

That is a follow-up to the 2013 intervention that ousted al Qaeda-linked militants from northern Mali who took control of the country’s desert north, including the fabled city of Timbuktu, in 2012.

Mali is a somewhat forgotten front in the West’s war on Islamist insurgencies. Al Qaeda allies took control of the country’s desert north, including the fabled city of Timbuktu, in 2012. In 2013, French troops and United Nations peacekeepers arrived to combat those terrorists.

Since then, soft attacks on civilians, particularly foreigners, have become frequent. In August, an attack on a hotel in the garrison town of Sevare left nine people dead.