Mali President confirms 21 dead, declares state of emergency

dimeji akinloye

November 21, 2015 2:14 AM

Islamist militants affiliated to al Qaeda have claimed responsibility for the attack.

Still image from video show a hostage rushed out from the Radisson hotel in Bamako, Mali, November 20, 2015. REUTERS/REUTERS TV

President of Mali, Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, has confirmed that 21 persons were killed in the hotel attack in Bamako, the country's capital.

Islamist militants affiliated to al Qaeda have claimed responsibility for the attack.

In a state television broadcast, Keita disclosed that seven people were injured in the crisis, adding that two of the terrorists were part of the dead bodies.

However, preliminary information by the United Nations peacekeepers had claimed that 27 bodies were found on two separate floors of the luxury hotel.

The peacekeepers said they saw 12 corpses in the basement of the hotel and another 15 on the second floor.

READ: Mali Hotel Siege - Six Americans recovered, Obama briefed

President Keita has declared a national state of emergency from midnight and three days of national mourning.

dimeji akinloye