At least three hostages were killed this morning as jihadists besieged a luxury hotel in the Malian capital Bamako, according to the country’s security ministry.

He added that security forces were now storming the establishment.

Gunmen shouting Islamic slogans attacked the luxury Radisson Blu hotel, popular with foreigners, and took 170 people hostage, the second such attack on a hotel in Mali since August.

The raid on the hotel, which lies just west of the city centre near government ministries and diplomatic offices in the former French colony, comes a week after so-called Islamic State militants killed 129 people in Paris.

The identity of the Bamako gunmen, or the group to which they belong, is not known.

Northern Mali was occupied by Islamist fighters, some with links to al Qaeda, for most of 2012. Although they were driven out by a French-led military operation, sporadic violence has continued.

The security source said as many as ten gunmen had stormed the building, firing shots and shouting “Allahu Akbar”, or “God is great” in Arabic.

Security sources say some hostages were released, including those able to recite verses of the Koran.

A ministry source said about a dozen hostages had been evacuated.

French nationals are among those held in the siege, according to a source close to French President Francois Hollande.

“We are still awaiting more precise information that’s been checked out. French people are present. The president is following the situation closely,” the source said.

Separately, a diplomatic source said that Malian special forces were at the scene and that France was providing logistical and intelligence support.

The Chinese state news agency Xinhua said at least seven Chinese tourists were among those trapped inside the building.

Turkish officials have said six Turkish Airlines staff were trapped in the hotel.

Security sources earlier said there could be as many as ten gunmen.

A senior member of the hotel’s security detail said two private security guards had been injured in the early stages of the attack, which began at 7am.

The US Embassy tweeted that it was “aware of an ongoing active shooter operation at the Radisson Hotel,” and instructed its citizens to stay indoors.

An Islamist group claimed responsibility for the death of five people last March in an attack on a restaurant in Bamako that is popular with foreigners.