Two French geologists were taken hostage at gunpoint early on Thursday after an armed gang stormed their hotel in the Mali desert. The abduction bore similarities to other Al-Qaeda linked kidnappings in the region. (from france24.com)

A gang kidnapped two French nationals at gunpoint from their hotel in the Malian desert early Thursday, local security sources said, the latest abduction of foreigners in the troubled region.

The two geologists were seized from the village of Hombori, which lies in eastern Mali between Mopti and Gao near the border with Niger, in an assault bearing the hallmark of Al-Qaeda linked Islamist militants.

A Hombori municipality source said seven armed men entered the hotel at about 1:00 am (0100 GMT) and made off with their hostages to the north of the country, a hotbed of Al-Qaeda militants.

The latest kidnap brings to six the number of French hostages in the Sahel area, with the group known as Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Magreb still holding four nationals abducted in Niger in September 2010.

Northern Mali is home to a number of AQIM bases used to launch attacks and kidnappings in the Sahel region on the southern side of the Sahara that includes Mali, Algeria, Niger and Mauritania.

The two geologists, who were working for a cement works in the region, were seized a day after a former French military official involved in efforts to free the hostages in Niger was shot and wounded in the shoulder.

An Italian and two Spaniards kidnapped in Algeria in October are also believed to be held by AQIM, although the group has not claimed responsibilty.