80 hostages freed as special forces storm

Eighty hostages held by Islamist gunmen have been freed from a luxury hotel in Mali's capital as government special forces moved floor by floor to clear the building, Mali's state broadcaster and a security source.

"The attackers are still inside. We're hearing gunfire from time to time," said a witness outside the Radisson Blu hotel.

Malian special forces entered the Radisson Blu in the capital Bamako on Friday after Islamist gunmen attacked the luxury hotel and took hostages, a witness and a police source said.