France defends failed Somali raid as civilian toll mounts
- Published: 14 Jan 2013 at 06.45
- Online news: World
Somali witnesses said at least eight civilians were killed in a disastrous French operation to rescue a secret agent, but France's defence minister defended the decision to launch the raid.
A file handout still frame released on October 4, 2012 by the SITE Monitoring Service shows French secret agent Denis Allex held hostage in Somalia urging French President to negotiate his release in a video shot by his Islamist militia captors. The United States said Sunday it played a limited support role in France's botched bid to rescue a kidnapped secret agent in Somalia.
Sources in lawless Somalia suggested the reason Saturday's raid had failed was that the Al Qaeda-linked Shebab group holding the hostage had received advance warning.
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