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| France blames Islamists as family kidnapped in Cameroon | France blames Islamists as family kidnapped in Cameroon |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| The French government has blamed Islamist militants from neighbouring Nigeria for the kidnapping of a family of seven French tourists, including four children, in Cameroon on Tuesday. | The French government has blamed Islamist militants from neighbouring Nigeria for the kidnapping of a family of seven French tourists, including four children, in Cameroon on Tuesday. |
| The family, who lived in Yaoundé, were captured at about 7am in a village six miles (10km) from the Nigerian border, near the Waza national park and Lake Chad, which are popular holiday destinations for westerners. They were believed to have been taken by gunmen on motorbikes as they travelled to the park. | The family, who lived in Yaoundé, were captured at about 7am in a village six miles (10km) from the Nigerian border, near the Waza national park and Lake Chad, which are popular holiday destinations for westerners. They were believed to have been taken by gunmen on motorbikes as they travelled to the park. |
| French media reported that the children travelling with their parents and an uncle were two girls and two boys. Le Parisien newspaper said they were aged four, seven, nine and 11. | French media reported that the children travelling with their parents and an uncle were two girls and two boys. Le Parisien newspaper said they were aged four, seven, nine and 11. |
| It is the first case of foreigners being seized in the north of Cameroon, a former French colony. | |
| The kidnapping comes six weeks after France launched a military intervention in another west African country, Mali, to fight Islamist groups who had taken over a swath of the north following a military coup. | The kidnapping comes six weeks after France launched a military intervention in another west African country, Mali, to fight Islamist groups who had taken over a swath of the north following a military coup. |
| Intense clashes between French troops and Islamist fighters continued on Tuesday in the remote Adrar des Ifoghas in northern Mali, where Islamists were said to have retreated. The French government said 20 Islamist rebels and one French soldier from the Foreign Legion had been killed in what appeared to be the first clashes in the remote northern terrain. | Intense clashes between French troops and Islamist fighters continued on Tuesday in the remote Adrar des Ifoghas in northern Mali, where Islamists were said to have retreated. The French government said 20 Islamist rebels and one French soldier from the Foreign Legion had been killed in what appeared to be the first clashes in the remote northern terrain. |
| The defence ministry said a parachute regiment of 150 soldiers supported by a heavy vehicle patrol and Mirage fighter jets had come under fire. | The defence ministry said a parachute regiment of 150 soldiers supported by a heavy vehicle patrol and Mirage fighter jets had come under fire. |
| French president François Hollande was on a trip to Athens when he was informed of the kidnapping. He said: "I see the hand of [Nigerian militants] Boko Haram in that part of Cameroon. France is in Mali and it will continue until its mission is completed." | French president François Hollande was on a trip to Athens when he was informed of the kidnapping. He said: "I see the hand of [Nigerian militants] Boko Haram in that part of Cameroon. France is in Mali and it will continue until its mission is completed." |
| Fear of kidnappings of French nationals in west Africa had been heightened since the Mali intervention. Eight French citizens are already being held hostage in west Africa's Sahel region by groups said to be affiliated to al-Qaida. | Fear of kidnappings of French nationals in west Africa had been heightened since the Mali intervention. Eight French citizens are already being held hostage in west Africa's Sahel region by groups said to be affiliated to al-Qaida. |
| "If everything is confirmed, this signifies that the fight against terrorist groups is a necessity," the foreign minister, Laurent Fabius, said in Paris. "There is a battle to be led by the international community against terrorist groups and narco-terrorists," he added, a reference to the trafficking in drugs, cigarettes and other commodities that had flourished in northern Mali under extremists. | "If everything is confirmed, this signifies that the fight against terrorist groups is a necessity," the foreign minister, Laurent Fabius, said in Paris. "There is a battle to be led by the international community against terrorist groups and narco-terrorists," he added, a reference to the trafficking in drugs, cigarettes and other commodities that had flourished in northern Mali under extremists. |
| On Sunday, seven foreigners including one Briton were snatched from the compound of Lebanese construction company Setraco in northern Nigeria's Bauchi state. Ansaru, which is described as a jihadi organisation with a record of hostage-taking and murder, has claimed responsibility. | On Sunday, seven foreigners including one Briton were snatched from the compound of Lebanese construction company Setraco in northern Nigeria's Bauchi state. Ansaru, which is described as a jihadi organisation with a record of hostage-taking and murder, has claimed responsibility. |
| Sunday's raid was the worst foreign kidnap case in northern Nigeria since an insurgency led by Boko Haram and other organisations intensified nearly two years ago. | Sunday's raid was the worst foreign kidnap case in northern Nigeria since an insurgency led by Boko Haram and other organisations intensified nearly two years ago. |
| Ansaru is thought to be a breakaway from Boko Haram with a seemingly sharper focus on global jihad rather than a domestic political agenda. Ansaru had claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of a French national last December, citing France's ban on full-face veils and its support for military action in Mali as reasons for the abduction. | Ansaru is thought to be a breakaway from Boko Haram with a seemingly sharper focus on global jihad rather than a domestic political agenda. Ansaru had claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of a French national last December, citing France's ban on full-face veils and its support for military action in Mali as reasons for the abduction. |