Mogadishu , Somalia ( CNN ) -- French forces swooped into Somalia for a rescue mission under the cover of darkness , leading to a fierce gunbattle with militants who officials fear killed the hostage , a French intelligence commando . The raid Friday night also left a French soldier and 17 Islamist fighters dead , according to the French defense ministry . Another soldier was missing . French President Francois Hollande acknowledged Saturday that the operation `` did not succeed . '' He said it led to the `` sacrifice '' of two French soldiers -- the one killed and other missing -- and `` maybe the assassination '' of hostage Denis Allex , who was a member of the DGSE , France 's equivalent of the CIA . French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian also told reporters in Paris on Saturday that `` everything leads us to believe that Denis Allex was gunned down by his captors . '' But the al-Shabaab militia , which is affiliated with al Qaeda , claimed that the hostage is unharmed and being held at a new location . The militants said in a statement on their Twitter account that they will decide the hostage 's fate in the next two days . Profile : Who are Al-Shabaab ? The racket of helicopter blades and volleys of gunfire startled Bulo Marer town residents out of their sleep Friday night , when French paratroopers descended on the camp . Three helicopters initiated a heated gunbattle with captors under the cover of darkness in the town about 75 miles northwest of the capital Mogadishu , eyewitnesses said . French soldiers leaped from the aircraft to engage the Islamists on the ground . Al-Shabaab 'recruiting U.S. citizens ' The French commandos faced strong resistance from the outset , the defense ministry said in a statement . `` In the course of the assault , fierce fighting took place . '' Al-Shabaab claimed the French soldiers left behind combat gear and a wounded comrade before disengaging . `` The injured French soldier is now in the custody of the Mujahideen , '' al-Shabaab said . Allex was abducted on July 14 , 2009 , while on an official mission in Mogadishu in support of the transitional Somali government , the French defense ministry said . French media reports suggest that Denis Allex is a pseudonym for the military serviceman . France said it decided to undertake the rescue attempt after the terror group failed to negotiate for the hostage 's release for three and a half years while holding him in inhumane conditions . `` After an intensive search , which I want to salute , the intelligence service detected the location where he was held , '' Le Drian , France 's defense minister , said Saturday . `` ... France will never withhold any means to gain the release of all of its hostages . '' Le Drian expressed his sympathy to the families of the French servicemen lost in the attempted rescue . The defense minister added that there was no connection between the operation in Somalia and a simultaneous deployment of French troops to Mali . A French helicopter pilot was fatally wounded during aerial raids in support of Malian forces combating Islamist forces Friday afternoon . New home for Somalia ? Omar Nor reported from Mogadishu , and Laura Smith-Spark wrote in London . CNN 's Joseph Netto , Pierre Meilhan and Ben Brumfield contributed to this report .
France 's government says the hostage rescue operation ` ` did not succeed '' A French soldier dies ; another is missing ; the hostage is presumed dead , France says . But Al - Qaeda says the hostage is alive and at a new location . France says it undertook the rescue operation after the hostage - takers refused to negotiate .