Three people were killed on Friday morning as jihadists took 170 people hostage in Radisson Blu hotel, in Bamako, Mali.

After the terrorists laid siege on the hotel for a couple of hours, Malian special forces are reported to have entered the hotel.

80 hostages are also reported to have been freed by the Malian soldiers.

“They’ve penetrated inside the hotel. The operations are under way,” a Malian police source was quoted to have said.

The special forces are presently clearing the hotel floor by floor, while sporadic gunfire is heard coming from the building.

Kolapo Olapoju