On Sunday, the Ivory Coast beach resorts witnessed a haunting scene as six gunmen stormed into the facilities carrying assault rifles and grenades, leaving several people dead in Grand Bassam and sending panicked vacationers rushing for shelter. Until now, authorities have reported 14 civilian casualties after the rampage on Grand Bassam’s facilities as well as the demise of the six gunmen.
The attack took place in Grand Bassam’s three hotels and according to the Ivory Coast’s government security forces neutralized the six attackers, however, those weren’t the only casualties. Among the victims of the assault from an unidentified group of attackers, 14 civilian casualties were reported, as well as two Special Forces soldiers who resulted killed.
The gunmen’s rampage started at the beach where four Europeans, including a five year-old child were slaughtered in the coastal city, according to a report from Mirror. A witness said one attacker approached two kids speaking Arabic, and then one child knelt and prayed while the other was shot in the head mercilessly.
The attackers were heavily armed with Kalashnikov rifles as they fired at guest at the Etoile du Sud hotel, according to witnesses of the killing spree on the Ivory Coast’s beach resorts. Security sweeps are underway at this instant in Grand Bassam, said the State Minister Hamed Bakayoko in a statement through the government’s Twitter account.
Tracking down the assailants
Although the six gunmen managed to slay several guests at the tourist destination, security and special forces intervened immediately and were able to stop the gunmen from further storming violently into the beach resorts’ facilities.
Further investigations after the shootings from unknown assailants in Grand Bassam suggests the group could be linked to Boko Haram.
The country’s proximity to Mali and Burkina Faso plays a significant indicator of the terrorist group could be responsible for the attacks, said managing director of International Corporate Protection Will Geddes.
The incident happened on Sunday resembles a previous attack in the Tunisian resort of Sousse where 28 tourist resulted dead after a shooting from an unidentified group last June. For now, the travel advice for visiting the Ivory Coast on the Foreign Office website warns that only indispensable travel to the country will be permitted.
Source: Mirror