TWO FRENCH JOURNLISTS working for Radio France International who were kidnapped in Mali have been found dead, the French foreign ministry have confirmed.
“RFI journalists Claude Verlon and Ghislaine Dupont were found dead in Mali,” the ministry said in a statement, adding they were kidnapped in the town of Kidal by an “armed group”.
Killed
“The French government, in conjunction with the Malian authorities will make every effort to find out as soon as possible about the circumstances of their death,” said the statement.
Earlier the RFI confirmed the kidnappings on its website, saying that journalists were taken at 1pm by armed men.
A Kidal city official says the journalists finished an interview with a Tuareg rebel leader when several armed men grabbed them. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not permitted to speak to the press.
Northern Mali last year was seized by a faction of al-Qaida which has used kidnappings of foreigners, especially French citizens, to bankroll its operations.
The killings comes just a few days after four frenchmen who were held hostage by al-Qaida militants for three years in the African Sahel have been released and flown home to France.
Additional reporting Associated Press
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