Update 9:30pm: Al Qaeda has claimed responsibility for the attack at Ivory Coast beach resort Grand-Bassam today in which at least 16 people lost their lives.
Fourteen civilians and two special forces soldiers were shot dead when gunmen wearing balaclavas and armed with kalashnikovs opened fire on the beach.
According to the SITE Intelligence Group, which monitors online communications by militant groups, Al-Qaeda posted a statement online claiming it was behind the attacks:
"In a message posted on its Telegram channels on March 13, 2016, the group reported that three 'heroes' from its group were able to storm the resort."
President Alassane Ouattara confirmed: "Six attackers came onto the beach in Bassam this afternoon... We have 14 civilians and two special forces soldiers who were unfortunately killed."
Update 16:55pm: It is believed that at least six people have lost their lives in a shooting involving six gunmen in the Ivory Coast today.
AFP reports that men wearing balaclavas "fired at guests at the L’Etoile du Sud, a large hotel which was full of expats in the current heatwave."
According to French media, the victims include five men, five women, and one child, the government said, though they did not expand on whether these were deaths or injuries.
Security services from the National Police and French armed forces are now on the site.
It has been reported that several people have lost their lives following gunfire at the beach resort of Grand-Bassam in the Ivory Coast.
French media is reporting that at least two gunmen ‘armed with machine guns’ opened fire on guests and staff near a number of hotels popular with western tourists in Grand Bassam, according to BBC.
A witness apparently told Connexion Ivoirienne:
"They shot at everyone.
"They are going from hotel to hotel."
It is understood that the army has evacuated the beach, which is 40 km from the capital, Abidjan.
Conflict between the North and the South broke out in the Ivory Coast in 2002, and since then outbreaks of violence have alternated with peace deals.
This a breaking news story. Updates to follow.
