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Mali Tourist Resort 'Under Attack'
Topic Started: Jun 18 2017, 02:30 PM (34 Views)
Webster
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BBC News: Mali Tourist Resort 'Under Attack'

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A tourist resort in Mali popular with Westerners is under attack by gunmen, a spokesman at the security ministry has told Reuters. Nearby residents reported hearing shots fired at the luxury destination.

The spokesman said the attack was ongoing at Le Campement resort in Dougourakoro, to the east of the capital Bamako.
Malian troops and soldiers from France's Bakhane counter-terrorist force are at the site. There was no information immediately available on casualties.

"Security forces are in place. Campement Kangaba is blocked off and an operation is under way," Security Ministry spokesman Baba Cisse told Reuters by phone.

Mali has been fighting a jihadist insurgency for several years, with Islamist fighters roaming the country's north and centre. In November 2015, at least 20 people were killed when gunmen took guests and staff hostage at the Radisson Blu hotel in Bamako.

Al-Qaeda's North African arm, Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), said it was behind that siege.

Mali has been in a state of emergency since the Radisson Blu attack. It was extended for a further six months in April. The country's security has gradually worsened since 2013, when French forces repelled allied Islamist and Tuareg rebel fighters from parts of the north.

French troops and a 10,000-strong force of UN peacekeepers have been battling to stabilise the former French colony.
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Webster
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(Daily Telegraph) Gunshots started at 4.30pm
Mohamed Salaha, a journalist based in Mali, said the first shots were heard around 4:30pm local time (5:30pm UK).

"A lot of black smoke coming from the Kangaba area," he tweeted at 6pm local time. "Helicopters overhead. The operation continues."
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Webster
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(Daily Telegrpah) US warned of increased threat of attack in Bamako
--The attack came a little over a week after the US state department warned its citizens of an increased threat of attack in Bamako. On June 9 they said: "The US Embassy informs US citizens of a possible increased threat of attacks against Western diplomatic missions, places of worship, and other locations in Bamako where Westerners frequent."

Americans, currently advised to avoid all travel to Mali, were told: "Avoid vulnerable locations with poor security measures in place, including hotels, restaurants, and churches."
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Webster
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(Daily Telegraph) Foreign Office: Terror attacks 'very likely in Mali'
--The Foreign Office noted the updated US warning, but stopped short of advising all Britons against travel to the entire country. Instead, they are told to avoid the areas of Timbuktu, Kidal, Gao and Mopti, and parts of other provinces.

The FCO advise against all but essential travel to the rest of Mali. "Terrorists are very likely to try to carry out attacks in Mali, including kidnaps," the Foreign Office said in its advice, updated on Saturday. "Attacks could be indiscriminate, including in places visited by foreigners."
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Webster
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--BREAKING: UN mission official: Terror attack underway at resort area in Mali's capital; casualties, hostages reported. (Associated Press, 18 June 2017)
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--#Mali: Photos from outside Campement Kangaba showing sec forces on site incl. 'Groupement d'intervention de la police nationale' (GIPN) (MENASTREAM, 18 June 2017)
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(Daily Telegraph) Hostages taken, casualties - reports
--There are reports of casualties in this attack, and of hostages being taken, but there is no further detail, according to a spokesman for Mali's UN mission
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Here's the Daily Telegraph's live feed of events from mali as they come in...
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Webster
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(Daily Telegraph) Two dead in attack
--At least two people were killed in the attack, which began around 4:30pm at Le Campement, half an hour southeast of Bamako. Baba Cisse, security ministry spokesman, said: "The first victim was a French-Gabonese citizen. We are in the process of confirming the other's nationality."

'20 hostages freed' - local media
--A spokesman for Algeria's security ministry has told local news outlet Studio Tamani that 20 hostages have been freed.
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(Daily Telegraph) 32 hostages rescued
--SECURITY FORCES HAVE RESCUED 32 GUESTS FROM MALI RESORT UNDER ATTACK BY GUNMEN - SECURITY MINISTRY SPOKESMAN
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(Daily Telegraph) Mali no stranger to jihadi attacks
--Religious extremism in Mali once was limited to northern areas, prompting the French military in 2013 to lead a military operation to oust jihadists from power in the major towns. But the militants have continued targeting Malian forces and peacekeepers, making it the deadliest UN mission in the world.

In March 2015, five people died when militants hit a popular restaurant in the capital.

A devastating attack on the Radisson Blu Hotel in Bamako later that year, in November, left 20 dead - six Malians and 14 foreigners. That attack was jointly claimed by both the regional al-Qaeda affiliate and a group known as Al Mourabitoun, which was founded by Moktar Belmoktar after he fell out with al-Qaeda leaders.

In a video released in March, jihadists said those two were joining together along with two Mali-based terror groups.
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....and that's where things stand as of 4:44pm US Time (9:44 London time)......
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Breaking 911: At Least 2 Dead In Attack on Popular Resort In Mali
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A security ministry official in Mali says a resort outside the country’s capital Bamako came under attack Sunday, killing at least two people and injuring several others. The siege was happening at the ‘Le Campement’, a luxury resort frequented by Westerners.

Smoke was seen in the area as witnesses reported hearing heavy gunfire. Dozens of hostages were taken by the terrorists but later freed, officials said.

“They [gunmen] exchanged gunshots with members of the special anti-terrorist force (FORSAT) who had arrived just a few minutes after the attack. FORSAT managed to secure the surroundings of the site. The operation to secure the premises is in progress,” police said in a statement—saying the incident was “certainly” radical Islamic terrorism.
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(Daily Telegraph) 'Westerners were fleeing the encampment'
--The number of people rescued from the resort has risen to 36 guests, according to Malian state TV reports.

Witness Boubacar Sangare was just outside the compound during the attack. "Westerners were fleeing the encampment while two plainclothes police exchanged fire with the assailants," he said.
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