UN official says initial reports indicate 27 killed in Mali

BAMAKO, Mali — A U.N. official says initial reports from the field indicate that 27 people were killed in the attack on the Radisson hotel in Mali's capital.

The official, speaking on condition of anonymity because the operation is still ongoing, said 12 bodies were found in the basement and 15 bodies were found on the second floor. The official stressed that the building had yet to be totally cleared.

Another U.N. official, U.N. Mali mission spokesman Olivier Salgado, said two extremists have been killed and that forces are going from room to room, checking for more casualties.