Bamako, Mali (GVO) – Armed men attacked a hotel in Bamako and took 170 people hostage last Friday, November 20. According to the latest counts, at least 21 guests and staff are dead, as well as at least three terrorists. According to reports, gunfire erupted around 7 a.m. at the Radisson Blu hotel, when attackers breached the facility’s security system. Soon thereafter, Malian soldiers, assisted by Minusma (UN) forces and French GIGN (National Gendarmerie Intervention Group) forces, stormed the building to free the hostages, killing all the terrorists. An investigation is now underway to identify the assailants.
Mali has declared a state of emergency, while the group Al-Mourabitoun—an ally of Al-Qaeda—has claimed responsibility for the attack. The assault in Mali comes one week after the murderous attacks on Paris by ISIS (or Daesh as it is called in Arabic), which left 130 dead and more than 350 injured.
Hostages in Shock
Mali’s hostage situation ended late in the day, after a siege that lasted several hours.
Ali Yazbeck, a patisserie chef at the hotel, was injured by two bullets—one in the neck and the other in the back. In a hospital bed, after being rescued, he described what it was like to be a hostage: after one attacker wearing a turban shot him, he took cover in an office, where he encountered two waitresses:
Baïda and Penda Cissé run a cigarette stand at the street corner perpendicular to the Radisson’s entrance. Baida gives this account of the events:
Acts of Bravery
In an extremely tense situation, several acts of bravery and cool thinking helped to prevent further loss of life, as illustrated by the calm leadership of the maitre d’hôtel, Tamba Diarra.
Tamba Diarra described his experience during the attacks, explaining what he did to protect the hostages’ lives:
Malian special forces also responded with commendable efficiency, demonstrating great professionalism and managing to save the vast majority of the hostages. On the Internet, a photograph of a Malian soldier carrying a hostage on his back to safety has become a viral sensation. Writing on Facebook, Boukary Konaté in Bamako shared his admiration for such heroism:
Most people in Mali have already returned to their ordinary economic activities, ignoring the risk of more terrorist attacks and the national state of emergency (which is still in force). In the following video, Mrs. Djero, a fish vendor, explains why the attacks will not affect her everyday life: