Chinese nationals killed in Mali hostage crisis, 4 rescued after special

China strongly condemns the Friday attack at a hotel in Mali’s capital Bamako that killed 27 people, including three Chinese nationals, and pledged to step up cooperation with the worldwide community to fight terrorism. “Everything is being done to follow the tracks” of the suspects, the source said, declining to give further details to avoid compromising the investigation.

“This evening, the death toll is heavy and awful: 21 dead, two [assailants] amongst them, and seven wounded”, President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita told Al Jazeera on Friday evening.

Security sources said the gunmen were jihadists who had entered the hotel compound at around 0700 GMT (2000 AEDT) in a vehicle that had diplomatic plates.

Monyela says officials are working with their counterparts in Mali to ensure the safety of all South Africans. Shooting and blasts rocked the building, where 170 people were held hostage for hours.

The three Chinese citizens killed in the hotel attack were executives from the state-owned China Railway Construction Corp, the company said in a statement on its website.

“Among the many foreigners captured as hostages there were citizens of Russian Federation – employees of the airline Volga-Dnepr”, ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a statement.

At least 18 bodies were reportedly found in the hotel.

“I woke up with the sounds of gunshots and for me, it was just small bandits who came in the hotel to claim something”, Diabate said.

Islamist groups have since continued to wage attacks in the country.

Security analyst Ryan Cummings says the region has battled Islamist rebels based in its desert north for years.

At least six Americans were also rescued after two U.S. special forces troops swooped in to assist Malian forces.

A US State Department official confirmed a 41-year-old American aid worker was among the victims, with another dozen Americans surviving the attack, while a Belgian regional assembly said one of its officials was also killed.