Gunmen stormed a hotel packed with foreigners in the former French colony of Mali on Friday, killing more than two dozen people and taking dozens of guests and workers hostage, NBC News reported.
A senior State Department spokesman told NBC News one U.S. citizen was among at least 20 dead in the attack at the Radisson Blu in Mali's capital of Bamako.
Nineteen civilians and a member of the Mali security services were killed, along with three attackers, according to a spokesperson for the United Nations.
The death toll is expected to rise.
A United National official, speaking on the condition of anonymity because the operation is ongoing, previously told The Associated Press initial reports indicate 27 people were killed in the attack.
