Seven armed terrorists kidnapped a French-speaking European Tuesday (November 20th) night in the Kayes region of western Mali, AFP reported.

The man, whose nationality and identity were unknown, had reportedly been travelling in a vehicle from Mauritania.

Mali's far western corner zone near the Mauritania and Senegal borders is not presently held by Islamist forces. In December 2009, however, an Italian-Burkinabe couple was kidnapped in the same region by al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) before being freed months later in exchange for a ransom.