Sarkozy Confirms Death of French Hostage

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PARIS (AFP) – President Nicolas Sarkozy vowed Monday to avenge the murder of a 78-year-old French aid worker who was kidnapped and killed in the Sahara desert by Al-Qaeda's North African wing.


Sarkozy spoke after Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) declared it had killed Michel Germaneau as revenge after French and Mauritanian soldiers stormed one of the group's camps in Mali and killed six militants.

"Dear compatriots, this crime committed against Michel Germaneau will not go unpunished," Sarkozy said, warning French nationals to avoid the arid Sahel region running through Mauritania, Mali, Niger and southern Algeria.

Sarkozy did not reveal what France plans to do in response to the killing, but experts and military officers told AFP to expect an increased use of spies and special forces to target militant groups in the Sahel.

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