Two Malians arrested in Senegal over I.Coast beach attack

Senegalese police have arrested two Malians suspected of involvement in a jihadist attack on an Ivory Coast beach resort last year that killed 19 people.

More than 10 suspects have already been detained in relation to the March 13 assault, when assailants armed with grenades and assault rifles stormed three hotels in Grand-Bassam, a beachside resort popular with foreigners 40 kilometres from Abidjan.

The attack, the first of its kind in the Ivory Coast, was claimed by Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, which has also carried out assaults on tourist hotspots in Mali and Burkina Faso.

Around 20 people were wounded in the incident.

The two Malians were arrested in Dakar, according to police spokesman Henry Boumy Ciss, who identified the men as Ould Sidy Mohamed Sina and Ould Am Sidalamine.

Ould Sidy Mohamed Sina "was the contact of the alleged planner" of the attack, Ciss added.

Despite the slew of arrests, the Malian man believed to be the main brains behind the attack, identified as Kounta Dallah, is still at large.

(This article has not been edited by DNA's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)