At 2:20 am local time, between three and six gunmen dressed in turbans and robes approached the embassy building on foot after being dropped off by a car at a close by nightclub and opened fire, shouting "Allahu akbar."

Although the overall attack had an "inconsequential" impact,[1] the ensuing gunfight injured three bystanders including a French woman at the nearby nightclub.

[2][3] In a statement titled "At your orders, Gaza," the extremist group Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb claimed responsibility for the attack and personally threatened the Israeli ambassador.

[3] According to the United States-based IntelCenter, one of Al-Qaeda's top commanders Ayman al-Zawahri had called for attacks on the Israeli ambassador in 2007.

[7] The Israeli Ambassador to Mauritania Boaz Bismuth stated on radio: "The opposition savagely attacked Israel because of the situation in Gaza.