Bamako: Mali government has declared a 10-day nationwide state of emergency after yesterday's attack on a hotel here that left over 20 people dead.
Following a Cabinet session presided over by President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, the government declared a state of emergency across the nation starting at midnight Friday for 10 days, a statement issued by the government said.
It also called for three days of mourning for the victims of the attack.
An extremist group led by former al-Qaida commander Moktar Belmoktar claimed responsibility for the attack in the former French colony, and many in France saw it as a new assault on their country's interests a week after the Paris attacks.
The siege began when assailants shouting "God is great!" in Arabic burst into the complex and opened fire on the hotel guards. An employee who identified himself as Tamba Diarra said that the militants used grenades in the attack.
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About 170 guests and employees were initially taken hostage, but some apparently escaped or hid in the sprawling, cream-and-pink hotel that has 190 rooms and a spa, outdoor pool and ballroom. They included visitors from France, Belgium, Germany, China, India, Canada, Ivory Coast and Turkey.
The US State Department said one American was among the dead, though it did not identify the victim out of respect for the family.
Army Commander Modibo Nama Traore informed that 126 people had been escorted to safety, and that at least one guest reported the attackers instructed him to recite verses from the Quran as proof of his Muslim faith before he was allowed to leave.
