France was facing a serious militant backlash against its intervention in northern Mali as the hostage crisis in neighboring Algeria deteriorated on Thursday.

French President Francois Hollande confirmed on Thursday that French nationals were among the hostages being held at a gas facility by a militant group linked to al-Qaida, which demanded an end to the French intervention.

The latest Algerian news reports said 34 hostages and 15 kidnappers were killed by Algerian forces.