Terrorist attack in the capital of Mali claimed lives of Russian citizens

Keita said in a statement that Mali will certainly not close down due to this strike, as Paris and NYC were not shut down after they faced terrorism.

Gunmen went on the rampage through the hotel from the early morning, shooting in the corridors and taking 170 guests and staff hostage, many of them foreigners.

For many Malians, the attacks on the hotel were a painful reminder of the instability the former French colony has endured over recent years.

Six Russians were killed in the hotel attack, Russia's foreign ministry said Saturday.

A Russian governor says the six Russians killed in Mali are part of the plane crew for the Russian cargo company Volga-Dnepr, which operates across the African continent. The three Chinese , among the 27 killed, are senior executives of China Railway Construction Corp.

At least 19 people were killed - a lower death toll than authorities initially reported - after a seven-hour standoff with Malian troops backed by U.S. and French special forces.

Bamako's streets have returned to normal following Friday's attack despite a state of emergency, which bans all rallies and street protests.

Governor of Ulyanovsk region Sergei Morozov said five of the slain Russians were from the central area, declaring Monday a day of mourning in Ulyanovsk. In a statement, a family spokesman said they were "devastated by the loss of our wonderful daughter who was doing the work that she loves".

Pope Francis on Sunday offered his condolences to the Malian people, in the form of a telegram to the archbishop of Bamako.

Mr Putin said on Saturday that he wanted global cooperation to combat terrorism in the wake of the Islamist militant attack. Those who died "were shot by gunmen in the restaurant literally in the first minutes of the terrorist attack on the hotel", it said. Al Mourabitoun and al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQMI) already had claimed responsibility.

Mali was plunged into violence after a military coup in March 2012 left a power vacuum that allowed Islamist militants to join with separatists and seize the north of the country.

In 2013, France intervened when a group of terrorists linked to al-Qaeda were on the verge of an attack on the capital of Mali.