Chinese FM condemns "inhuman" Mali hotel attack

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Saturday strongly condemned the deadly terrorist attack on a hotel in Bamako and called for concerted efforts to fight terrorism.

Three Chinese nationals were among the 27 people killed in the assault on the Radisson Blu hotel in the Malian capital, which Wang described as an "inhuman atrocity."

Noting that the three Chinese victims were all engineers sent to Mali to help with Africa's development and improve the well-being of the African people, Wang said, "we are greatly saddened by their tragedies and hereby offer our sincere condolences."

"We believe that all African people will also strongly condemn and oppose the brutal crime," he said.

Wang, who is accompanying Chinese Premier Li Keqiang in Kuala Lumpur for a series of regional summits, stressed that the Chinese leadership "pays high attention to the incident and has instructed us to do whatever is necessary."

The Chinese embassy in Mali, he added, will do its utmost in addressing relevant matters.

China unswervingly opposes terrorism no matter what form it takes and where it occurs, emphasized the minister, urging the international community to join hands against the common threat.

The three Chinese victims were all senior executives of China Railway Construction Corp., and they were in Bamako to discuss a project with Mali's transport ministry, the state-owned company said in a post on its website, citing information from the Chinese embassy.

Earlier in the day, the Chinese Foreign Ministry confirmed that four other Chinese nationals held hostage in the Bamako hotel had been rescued. Endi