Leila Alaoui, the 33-year-old French-Moroccan photographer, died on Monday, January 18 as a result of injuries sustained during Friday’s al-Qaeda terrorist attack in Burkina Faso hotel, along with her driver, Mahamadi Ouédraogo, a father of four.
"Leila was an extraordinary young woman," her boss, Traore said. "We wanted to work with her because of her talent, and her passion for helping women, girls and marginalised people tell their own stories and claim their rights. As a strong woman herself, she wanted to show women as authors of their own destiny, not as victims. We are all devastated by her loss."
While speaking of Alaoui’s driver Mahamadi Ouédraogo, Traore said: "Mahamadi was a dedicated, helpful and caring colleague. His warm smile and discretion were a feature of the many Amnesty missions that he accompanied us on over the past seven years. He did more than drive us safely everywhere; he also joined in to help out during mission activities. His death is a huge loss to us all."
Alaoui who was working on an Assignment for Amnesty International alongside her driver, Ouédraogo were both parked outside the Cappuccino cafe, opposite the Splendid Hotel –both popular venues for travellers – when the attack occurred. Both were shot multiple times at close range.
Her mother, Christine Alaoui, said her daughter had suffered gunshot wounds to her lung, abdomen, arm, leg and kidney.
Alaoui underwent a six-hour operation over the weekend at a local hospital and was expected to be flown back to France soon, but she succumbed to her injuries on Monday night after suffering a heart attack.
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