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Radisson Hotel in Mali Attacked; Hostage Situation with at Least Nine Killed

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Radisson Hotel in Mali Attacked; Hostage Situation with at Least Nine Killed
Photo: Jerome Delay/AP

Gunmen attacked a popular hotel in Mali's capital early Friday with guns and grenades, taking hostage at least 170 hostages; nine people have already been killed in the attack, according to media reports.

According to the sources of Agence France-Presse, the two gunmen took 170 hostages during an attack early Friday, Bloomberg reported.

“The attack is ongoing,” United Nations spokesman Olivier Salgado said by phone from the capital. “What we know is that the attackers are in the hotel and have automatic weapons.”Meanwhile, BBC reports on 10 attackers.

UN forces and Malian government troops are at the scene, he said. The French and U.S. embassies confirmed that the attack was under way.

A staffer at the Radisson Blu hotel said over the phone that the attackers used grenades in the assault, the Associated Press reports.

He did not have information on casualties or the number of assailants involved, but said he was not aware of hostages having been taken at the hotel.

Following a military coup in 2012, Islamic extremists took control of northern Mali, prompting a French-led military intervention in early 2013. The extremists were scattered from northern towns and cities, though the north remains insecure and militant attacks have extended farther south this year.

In March masked gunmen shot up a Bamako restaurant popular with foreigners, killing five people.

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