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Two Austrians kidnapped in northern Burkina Faso Two Australians kidnapped in northern Burkina Faso
(about 5 hours later)
Two Austrian citizens – a doctor and his wife – have been kidnapped by extremists in northern Burkina Faso near the border with Mali, the country’s security ministry has confirmed. Two Australian citizens – a doctor and his wife – have been kidnapped by extremists in northern Burkina Faso near the border with Mali, the country’s security ministry has confirmed.
A spokeswoman for the ministry said the jihadis abducted the couple from the town of Baraboule in the Soum province in Burkina Faso’s Sahel region overnight. She did not have immediate information on how long the two had been in the area, where they were doing volunteer work. It had earlier wrongly been reported that the couple, named on social media as Ken and Jocelyn Elliot, were Austrian.
It was not immediately clear whether the abduction was linked to an attack carried out by al-Qaida fighters against a hotel in the country’s capital late on Friday, which killed at least 22 people from 18 different nationalities. They have lived in Burkina Faso for 40 years and built a 120-bed medical facility in Djibo, according to the GBS Institute. Elliot has been the only doctor at the Friends of Burkina Faso medical clinic, where he conducts as many as 150 surgeries a month.
A security ministry spokesperson said the jihadis abducted the couple from the town of Baraboule in the Soum province in Burkina Faso’s Sahel region overnight.
It was not immediately clear whether the abduction was linked to an attack carried out by al-Qaida fighters against a hotel in the country’s capital late on Friday, in which at least 22 people from 18 different nationalities were killed.
Related: Burkina Faso security forces free 120 hostages in al-Qaida hotel attackRelated: Burkina Faso security forces free 120 hostages in al-Qaida hotel attack
Security forces confirmed that three jihadis had also been killed in the assault on the Splendid hotel and nearby Cappuccino cafe in Ouagadougou. A fourth was killed at the Yibi hotel, which was searched by troops as part of a later raid on nearby buildings. Security forces confirmed that three jihadis had also been killed in the assault on the Splendid hotel and nearby Cappuccino cafe in Ouagadougou.
Security forces freed more than 120 hostages, including at least 33 wounded, from the Splendid hotel, after militants took control of the five-storey building popular with UN staff and foreigners. Dozens of French forces arrived overnight from neighbouring Mali to aid in the rescue. A fourth was killed at the Yibi hotel, which was searched by troops as part of a later raid on nearby buildings.
More details soon … Security forces freed more than 120 hostages, including at least 33 wounded, from the Splendid hotel, after militants took control of the five-storey building popular with UN staff and foreigners.
Dozens of French forces arrived overnight from neighbouring Mali to aid in the rescue.