US-based SITE intelligence monitoring group say AQIM, al-Qaeda in the Islamic Magreb, has claimed responsibility for the attack. It said the al-Murabitoun group, which is based in the Sahara desert in northern Mali, was responsible for the attacks. The group includes fighters loyal to the veteran Algerian militant Mokhtar Belmokhtar.

The hotel, Reuters reported, is sometimes used by French troops that combat Islamist militants across the Sahel region. Given the similarity of this attack with the one perpetrated by radical Islamist terrorists in Bamako, Mali on Nov. 20, 2015, allegations have been made that this could be an Islamist attack, though there are no official confirmation. The attacks in Bamako resulted in the deaths of 20 people and 14 wounded.

It’s been tumultuous year and a half for Burkina Faso, which swore in president Roch Marc Christian Kaboré, on Dec. 29.

The period began with the ousting of long-time leader Blaise Compaoré, who was forced out of office by a popular uprising that opposed his efforts to change the constitution so he could stay on in power. The transitional government formed after his departure faced its own crisis after it was overthrown in September by a section of the military loyal to Compaoré. But the army quickly thwarted the coup and restored the interim administration

This is a developing story and will be updated.

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