French nationals killed in Ivory Coast beach attack

Source: BBC

Four French nationals are among the 18 people who were killed by Islamist militants at a beach resort in Ivory Coast on Sunday, the French President Francois Hollande has said.

Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) said it was behind the gun attack.
Grand Bassam beach is popular with locals and foreigners and people from at least six countries were killed in the attack.
It is the first jihadist attack in Ivory Coast.
A total of 21 people died in the attack, including three gunmen and three security force members, officials said.

As well as Ivorians and French victims, the attackers also killed people from Germany, Burkina Faso, Cameroon and Mali, officials say.

President Alassane Ouattara visited the site, about 40km (25 miles) from the commercial capital Abidjan, on the evening of the attack.
He promised that security in Ivory Coast, the world's leading cocoa producer, would be stepped up.
"These cowardly attacks by terrorists will not be tolerated," he said.
He met ministers on Monday in an emergency meeting and announced three days of national mourning.

AQIM has been behind two other similar attacks in West Africa in the last four months, attacking hotels in Mali and Burkina Faso.
BBC regional reporter Maud Jullien says Ivory Coast has been identified as one of several countries in West Africa at risk of being targeted by Islamist militants.