Al-Qaeda Kills 16 at Beach Resort in Ivory Coast

Amanda Casanova | ChristianHeadlines.com Contributor | Updated: Mar 14, 2016

Al-Qaeda Kills 16 at Beach Resort in Ivory Coast

Sixteen people died at a beach resort town in Ivory Coast Sunday after gunmen opened fire at the town.

According to ChristianToday.com, six shooters targeted hotels at Grand Bassam. Ivorian authorities then killed the shooters.

"Six attackers came onto the beach in Bassam this afternoon," Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara said during a visit to the site. "We have 14 civilians and two special forces soldiers who were unfortunately killed."

Four of the dead were European and one was French. The nationalities of the other victims are unknown.

"They started shooting and everyone just started running. There were women and children running and hiding," said another witness, Marie Bassole. "It started on the beach. Whoever they saw, they shot at."

Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb has claimed responsibility for the attack.

The interior minister said Sunday that searches were ongoing for possible accomplices. 

Grand Bassam is about 25 miles east of the commercial capital city of Abidjan. It is a popular place for thousands of beachgoers.

In November, gunmen killed more than 20 people at a hotel in Mali, and in January, shooters attacked a hotel in Burkina Faso and killed about 28 people.

Publication date: March 14, 2016



Al-Qaeda Kills 16 at Beach Resort in Ivory Coast