Al-Murabitoun group, an al-Qaida affiliate led by notorious one-eyed Algerian militant Mokhtar Belmokhtar, has claimed responsibility for the attack.
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The attackers did not say a word to anyone as they opened fire starting at 7 a.m. Friday, employee Tamba Couye said.
The group said the two were the only assailants in the attack that killed 19 people.
Malian forces eventually stormed the hotel, resulting in the deaths of the two alleged hostage-takers.
Security officials who had said they were searching for three people immediately said after the assault on Sunday that two were dead.
Special units of the armed forces of Mali, with the support of the French security services began to assault the building and pushed the attacking troops to the upper floors, where an intense battle continued.
There is still confusion around the nationality of the gunmen but they were said by witnesses to have spoken English.
A second terror cell has claimed responsibility for the Mali hotel slaughter which left 19 people dead, it has been reported.
On Sunday, al-Mourabitoun issued a new audio recording saying there were two attackers and identified them, according to a Mauritanian news website. Jihadist group Al Mourabitoun and al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) already had claimed liability.
Authorities released a detailed list of the 138 people from more than 20 countries evacuated from the hotel during the attack, including 18 from France, 17 from India and five from the United States. Six Russians, three Chinese, two Belgians, a Senegalese, an Israeli and an American were also victims.
Now, the Macina Liberation Front (MLF) which has been blamed for attacks in southern Mali, has said its fighters carried it out. The claim said the attack was in retaliation for Operation Barkhane, the regional French fight against Islamic extremists, according to Radio France Internationale.
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A representative from northern Mali separatist groups said the assault on the hotel was an attempt to derail its fragile peace accord signed in June with the Bamako government. The incident came after the extremist fighters, who had staged a military coup in Bamako, were dispersed and driven out of towns by a 2013 French-led military offensive.
