18 people Have Been Killed After a Gun Battle With Gunmen Held 170 People Hostage in a Hotel in Mali

Mali's security minister has said that the remaining hostages have been freed after gunmen raided a Radisson Blu hotel in the country's capital, Bamako.

At least 18 people were reportedly killed after the gunmen stormed the building while shouting Islamic slogans, though a UN official said peacekeepers saw at least 27 bodies in the hotel.

Two of the gunmen were reportedly killed after security forces raided the hotel. 

One of the freed hostages told France 24: "I saw dead bodies in the lobby. I was hiding in my room. There were several minutes and then security forces smashed my door and we left."

Supporters of a group affiliated with al-Qaeda claimed responsibility for the attack via Twitter on Friday, Reuters reported.

The attack on the Radisson Blu hotel - a 190-room hotel popular with Western business executives, diplomats, and politicians that lies just west of the city center in the former French colony — came a week after Islamic State terrorists killed 129 people in Paris.

Six US citizens are among those who were freed.

Malian and UN forces carried out joint security operations in a bid to secure the hotel. The UN posted on Twitter saying it was supplying security reinforcements as well as medics at the site. Meanwhile, France has been providing logistical support. 

US Special Forces also helped free hostages from the hotel, where attackers reportedly barricaded themselves in on the seventh floor.

"We will use all the means available to us on the ground to free the hostages," French President Francois Hollande said from Paris ahead of a speech he was giving on climate change talks.

Fifty elite French counter-terrorism officers reached the hotel in Bamako on Friday afternoon. The Groupe d'Intervention de la Gendarmerie Nationale (GIGN) is a French unit dedicated to the tackling of hostage situations.

An AirFrance crew of 12 people was also safely evacuated, with the airline cancelling all of Friday's flights to and from the city according to Reuters.

The gunmen took the hotel floor by floor, and according to a report in The Telegraph, were freeing hostages if they could recite verses from the Qur'an.

A famous Guinean singer who was among those taken hostage, but has since been freed, said he heard the attackers in the next room speaking English.

"I heard them say in English 'Did you load it?', 'Let's go'," Sékouba 'Bambino' Diabate, told Reuters in Conakry. "I wasn't able to see them because in these kinds of situations it's hard."

The Rezidor Hotel Group, which owns the hotel, released the following statement:

Our safety & security teams and our corporate team are in constant contact with the local authorities in order offer any support possible to reinstate safety and security at the hotel. At this point we do not have further information and continue to closely monitor the situation.

The Bamako gunmen, who entered the building with rifles and grenades, claimed affiliation with al-Qaeda.

Among those inside the hotel were six Turkish Airline personnel, three of whom managed to escape, and three UN employees, all of whom were evacuated. Seven Chinese tourists and 20 Indian guests were also inside the building.

The hotel was also hosting a massive international mining conference, meaning the hotel was most likely hosting several executives from the industry.

The US embassy in Mali urged American citizens in the country to follow orders from local authorities and remain sheltered.

Security message (2/4) The U.S. Embassy staff has been asked to shelter in place. All U.S. citizens should shelter in place.

Northern Mali was occupied by Islamic fighters, some with links to Al Qaeda, for most of 2012. Though they were driven out by a French-led military operation, sporadic violence has continued. 

An Islamic group claimed responsibility for the death of five people last March in an attack on a restaurant in Bamako that is popular with foreigners. 

Culled from business insider