Seven Algerians freed from Mali hotel seized by gunmen

Seven Algerians including diplomats who were trapped in a hotel in Mali's capital Bamako when it was seized by gunmen Friday were freed when troops stormed it, Algeria's foreign minister said.

They were a six-member official Algerian delegation, mostly diplomats, and a private citizen who works for a French company, Ramtane Lamamra said, quoted by the APS news agency.

It was not immediately clear if more Algerians were in the Radisson Blu hotel when gunmen went on a rampage Friday morning, taking 170 guests and staff hostage.

Lamamra, who said he has been in "permanent contact" with his Malian counterpart Abdoulaye Diop, expressed Algeria's "firm condemnation" of "all terrorist acts anywhere and under any circumstances".

Caption: Malian army, French and UN troops take position outside the Radisson Blu hotel in Bamako (The Guardian)