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Mali hotel siege: Gunmen take hostages in deadly raid | |
(about 4 hours later) | |
At least eight people have been killed in the town of Sevare in central Mali after gunmen attacked a hotel, officials say. | |
The army said the dead included at least three soldiers and two gunmen. An unknown number of hostages are still being held at the Byblos Hotel. | |
Russia and Ukraine have each said that one of their citizens was being held in the siege. | |
Mali has been fighting Islamist rebels in the north for a number of years. | |
Army spokesman Lt Col Diarran Kone told the Associated Press that the operation to free hostages was ongoing. | |
The BBC's Alex Duval Smith in Mali says the town, which is about 600km (370 miles) north-east of the capital, Bamako, is a trading hub that serves the historic riverside city of Mopti. | |
There are several hotels near each other in the town that are popular with UN workers and those working for non-governmental organisations, she says. | |
A spokesman for the Russian embassy in Mali said one of those being held was a Russian citizen. Earlier, officials in Kiev said a Ukrainian citizen was also believed to have been captured. | |
The BBC has learned that guests from France, South Africa and Ukraine are registered at the hotels. | |
UN spokeswoman Radhia Achouri refused to say whether any UN members of staff had been affected or were being held hostage in the Byblos Hotel. | UN spokeswoman Radhia Achouri refused to say whether any UN members of staff had been affected or were being held hostage in the Byblos Hotel. |
A local resident told the BBC that it was the first time the city has been hit by an attack like this. | |
"Since the beginning of the fighting in Mali, we haven't experienced such a situation in Sevare. | |
"We would expect these things to happen in Gao or Timbuktu, but this the first time it has happened in Sevare," he said. | |
Al-Qaeda-linked militants have been fighting the army in northern Mali. | |
France, the former colonial power in Mali, intervened in January 2013 to stop their advance south to the capital. | France, the former colonial power in Mali, intervened in January 2013 to stop their advance south to the capital. |
Militancy in Mali | Militancy in Mali |