Mike Riddering, a missionary with Sheltering Wings, who was killed in the terrorist attack in Burkina Faso Friday.
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An Italian bishop in Burkina Faso to deliver charity aid says that despite great worry life is returning to normal in that country’s capital after al-Qaida-linked extremists attacked a luxury hotel and killed 23 people. He worked with his wife at Les Ailes de Refuge orphanage in Yako, a town about 100 kilometers northwest of Ouagadougou.
The Ouagadougou assault, claimed by al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), marked an expansion of operations for Islamist militants who are stepping up their activities, echoing the growth of Islamic State in the Middle East.
He said two of the three attackers killed earlier Saturday have been identified as women.
A “small number” of U.S. forces participated in the rescue at the hotel, Anthony Falvo, a spokesman for U.S. Africa Command, said in an e-mail, though the U.S. primarily advised and provided information to the Burkina Faso and French militaries.
As well as the luxury hotel, a cafe and another hotel nearby were targeted. At least 23 people have been killed, as well as four extremist attackers.
“As soon as you lifted your head you would get shot straight away so you had to pretend to be dead and they even came to touch our feet to check if we were alive…”
A total of 126 people were freed and taken to hospital, and 33 were badly injured. “They were firing at people at close range”, Yannick Sawadogo, one of those who escaped, told AFP.
The attack in Burkina Faso appeared well-planned, with some of the attackers coming to the hotel during the day and mingling with guests, the foreign minister said.
Also on Saturday, Denmark’s Foreign Minister Kristian Jensen said the country would re-assess whether it was safe for Denmark’s Australian-born Crown Princess Mary to travel to Burkina Faso later this month as part of an official Danish delegation.
When darkness fell, more attackers joined them, he said.
Burkina Faso’s Minister of Security and Internal Affairs Simon Compaore says that the two foreigners kidnapped in the country’s north are Australian, not Austrian as the ministry’s spokeswoman had announced earlier.
Burkinabe forces, with logistical support from American and French troops, circled the hotel for several hours before they rescued hostages.
A military base in the same region was attacked by militants in August previous year, with one Burkinabe policeman killed.
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The hotel attack in Mali in November also was claimed by a leader of AQIM, who said it had been carried out as a declaration of unity with Algerian militant Moktar Belmoktar’s extremist group Al-Mourabitoun, according to an audio speech that was distributed by SITE at the time. CNN reports that at least one USA soldier is at the scene and that US surveillance drones had been deployed.
