Gunmen kidnap French national in Mali
BAMAKO (Reuters) - Gunmen have kidnapped a French national in Mali's remote east, a government source said on Thursday.
"The kidnapped man is an expatriate called Pierre Kamat. He was taken yesterday afternoon," said a government official, citing reports from local authorities in the eastern town of Menaka. The official, who asked not to be named, said the Frenchman had been visiting the town of Tinderman when taken.
The attack is the latest in a series on foreigners in Mali and Niger's remote desert regions, where the countries have recently ended local rebellions but a plethora of smugglers, bandits and al Qaeda-linked groups operate.
France's embassy in its former colony last week warned its citizens of the risk of kidnapping in the desert regions, advising them to restrict their movements. Charities working in the area have also been advised to review security measures.
Last year, a group of European tourists were kidnapped when they were visiting a festival on the nearby Mali-Niger border. Al Qaeda's North African wing, known as AQIM, later released three of the hostages but killed one, a British national.
A Canadian United Nations envoy and his aide were also kidnapped in Niger in late 2008 and released in April this year.
Although never officially confirmed, analysts say ransoms are often paid to free the foreigners and al Qaeda's threat in the region is based as much on a complex blend of criminality and opportunism as it is on hardline Islamism.
(Reporting by Tiemoko Diallo; writing by David Lewis)
