Grand-Bassam shootings

On 13 March 2016, three Islamist gunmen opened fire at a beach resort in Grand-Bassam, Ivory Coast, killing at least 19 people and injuring 33 others.[1][2][3][4]

Grand-Bassam shootings
Part of the spillover of the Sahel insurgency
The beach targeted, pictured in 2008
LocationGrand-Bassam, Ivory Coast
Date13 March 2016
Attack type
Mass murder, mass shooting
WeaponsAssault rifles
Hand grenades
Deaths16 civilians[1] and 3 special forces members
(+3 attackers)
Injured33
PerpetratorsAl-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb
Al-Mourabitoun
No. of participants
6
Grand-Bassam is located in Ivory Coast
Grand-Bassam
Grand-Bassam
Grand-Bassam within the Ivory Coast

Attack

Three armed assailants[5] attacked the Étoile du Sud hotel which, according to Agence France-Presse, was occupied by numerous expatriates at the time.[6][nb 1] According to officials, 15 civilians and three special forces soldiers were killed.[8]

The attackers were described as African, armed with Kalashnikov rifles and grenade belts and dressed in casual clothes and balaclavas.[3] A shootout occurred between the attackers and police as the assailants reached the La Paillote Hotel. Local residents and tourists were evacuated by army personnel from the beach to nearby hotels, which were temporarily placed on lockdown.[9]

The Associated Press quoted Government officials as saying that security forces had killed six armed men.[10][11] The terrorists allegedly shouted "Allahu Akbar".[12] An American embassy delegation was at Grand-Bassam on the date of the attack, but the US Embassy in Abidjan said on Twitter that there is "no evidence that U.S. citizens were targeted nor confirmed reports of any U.S [sic] citizens as harmed."[13][14] French authorities had warned both Ivory Coast and Senegal weeks earlier of the danger of a terrorist attack. [15]

Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and al-Mourabitoun claimed responsibility for the attack.[16] On 17 March, AQIM released the names of the attackers: Hamza al-Fulani and Abu Adam al-Ansari from al-Mourabitoun and Abderrahmane al-Fulani from the "Emirate of the Desert".[17] It had been the third bloody attack on a tourism resort in West Africa for four months. In all, dozens of people fell victim to the assassinations and more were injured.[18][19]

Casualties
Deaths by nationality
Country Number Ref.
 Ivory Coast 9 [1]
 France 4 [1]
 Lebanon 1 [1][20]
 Mali 1 [21]
 Nigeria 1 [1]
 Germany 1 [1]
 North Macedonia 1 [1][22]
Undisclosed 1 [23]
Total 19 [20]

Reactions

Domestic

International reactions
  •  Canada: Global Affairs Canada stated that "Canada condemns the terrorist attack at Grand-Bassam beach resort in Côte d'Ivoire. Our thoughts and prayers are with you."[25]
  •  France: President François Hollande stated that he "strongly condemns the cowardly attack that caused the death of at least ten civilians, including at least one French national, and several members of the security forces in Grand-Bassam".[26] He also stated that "France will bring its logistical support and intelligence to Ivory Coast to find the attackers. It will pursue and intensify its cooperation with its partners in the fight against terrorism."[27]
  •  India: Prime Minister Narendra Modi condemned the attacks and stated his thoughts were with the families of the victims and wished the injured a speedy recovery.[28][29]
  •  United Kingdom: Prime Minister David Cameron stated on Twitter: "I'm appalled by the devastating terror attacks in Ankara and the Ivory Coast. My thoughts are with all those affected."[30]
  •  United States: In a statement by the National Security Council of the White House, the U.S. condemned the terrorist attack in Grand-Bassam. Furthermore, it extended deep condolences to the loved ones of the victims and that their thoughts and prayers also are with the injured. It also commended "the bravery of the Ivorian and French security personnel who responded to the situation and prevented even worse loss of life."[31]

See also

Notes
  1. A group of Ukrainian peacekeepers was also at the beach.[7] Its team supervisor, Maj. Olena Liakhova, suffered a facial wound.[7]

References
  1. Côte d’Ivoire : l’attentat de Grand-Bassam a majoritairement frappé des Ivoiriens (in French). Vincent Duhem, Jeune Afrique; 12.47pm, 16 March 2016 - updated 16 March 2016 at 12:58pm.
  2. Reuters Editorial (14 March 2016). "Death toll in Ivory Coast militant attack rises to 18: government". Reuters. {{cite web}}: |author= has generic name (help)
  3. "Ivory Coast hotel shooting: Gunmen 'kill 15 including four Europeans' in Grand Bassam beach resort". Telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 13 March 2016.
  4. "Ivory Coast Hotel Shooting: 12 Dead – Reports". Sky News. 13 March 2016. Retrieved 13 March 2016.
  5. "Gunmen open fire in Ivory Coast tourist resort". The Guardian. 13 March 2016. Retrieved 13 March 2016.
  6. "Ivory Coast: Shooting at Grand Bassam beach resort". BBC News. 13 March 2016. Retrieved 13 March 2016.
  7. Ukrainian peacekeepers commander injured in beach attack in Cote d'Ivoire, Interfax-Ukraine (14 March 2014)
  8. "18 killed in attack on Ivory Coast hotels". CNN. Retrieved 14 March 2016.
  9. "Gunmen Killed 14 People at a Beach Resort in Ivory Coast on Sunday". VICE News. Retrieved 13 March 2016.
  10. "The Latest: Ivory Coast Says 6 Beach Attackers 'Neutralized'". ABC News. Retrieved 13 March 2016.
  11. "Ivory Coast's government says that security forces have neutralized six armed men who staged attacks on three hotels in the historic town of Grand-Bassam". U.S. News & World Report. 13 March 2016. Retrieved 13 March 2016.
  12. "Ivory Coast hotel shooting: Gunmen 'kill 12 including four Europeans' in Grand Bassam beach resort". Telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 13 March 2016.
  13. "12 people reportedly dead in gun attack on Ivory Coast beach resort popular with Western tourists". The Independent. Retrieved 13 March 2016.
  14. "U.S. Embassy Abidjan on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 13 March 2016.
  15. Coulibaly, Loucoumane; Searcey, Dionne (13 March 2016). "16 Killed in Terrorist Attack on Resort Hotels in Ivory Coast (Published 2016)". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
  16. Mieu, Baudelaire (13 March 2016). "Al-Qaeda Claims Ivory Coast Attack With at Least 16 Killed". Bloomberg Business. Retrieved 13 March 2016.
  17. "AQIM releases Grand-Bassam attackers' photos". StarAfrica. 17 March 2016. Archived from the original on 22 March 2016. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
  18. "Al-Qaeda claims deadly Ivory Coast attack". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
  19. Coulibaly, Loucoumane; Searcey, Dionne (13 March 2016). "16 Killed in Terrorist Attack on Resort Hotels in Ivory Coast (Published 2016)". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
  20. "Attentat de Grand-Bassam: une dix-neuvième victime retrouvée". LExpress.fr. Retrieved 16 March 2016.
  21. "I.Coast hands down four life terms for 2016 jihadist attack". rfi. 29 December 2022.
  22. Côte d'Ivoire: une Macédonienne parmi les victimes (in French); published 15 March 2016 at 16:41; updated on 15 March 2016 at 16:46.
  23. "I.Coast hands down four life terms for 2016 jihadist attack". rfi. 29 December 2022.
  24. "Ivory Coast steps up security following jihadist attack". BBC News. Retrieved 14 March 2016.
  25. "Foreign Policy CAN on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  26. "France's Hollande denounces 'cowardly' Ivory Coast attack". Yahoo News. Retrieved 13 March 2016.
  27. "Côte d'Ivoire : Hollande dénonce un "lâche attentat", au moins un Français tué". Le Parisien (in French). Retrieved 13 March 2016.
  28. "Narendra Modi on Twitter". Twitter.
  29. "PM Modi condemns multiple terror attacks in Ivory Coast, Ankara". The Times of India. 14 March 2016.
  30. "David Cameron on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  31. "Statement by NSC Spokesperson Ned Price on the Terrorist Attack in Côte d'Ivoire". whitehouse.gov. Archived from the original on 16 March 2016. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
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