At least 20 die in Somalia capital Mogadishu in hotel attack claimed by al Shabaab
Twin car bomb blasts were heard ahead of gunfire in the first attack in Somalia since the new president Hassan Sheikh Mohamud was elected in May.
Sunday 21 August 2022 01:50, UK
Somali forces claim to have ended the deadly siege at a hotel in the capital Mogadishu after armed Islamic militants stormed the building on Friday.
At least 20 people were killed and 40 others injured, including children, during the 30-hour attack on the Hayat Hotel, according to police and witnesses.
Al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab has claimed it was behind the attack.
Speaking to the AFP news agency on Saturday evening, a security commander said "the gunmen are dead", adding that a news briefing would be held on Sunday.
The attackers struck the Hayat Hotel with two car bombs, before entering the building while firing their guns and seizing control at about 4pm local time (6pm UK time) on Friday.
The detonations sent huge plumes of smoke over the busy junction on Friday night, and the sound of gunfire still crackled across the capital on Saturday.
Eyewitness Abdullahi Hussein told the Associated Press: "We were having tea near the hotel lobby when we heard the first blast followed by gunfire. I immediately rushed toward hotel rooms on the ground floor, and I locked (it).
"The militants went straight upstairs and started shooting. I was inside the room until the security forces arrived and rescued me."
He said that as he was making his way out of the complex he saw "several bodies lying on the ground outside hotel reception".
Al Shabaab has been fighting to remove the Somali government for more than 10 years, with the aim of establishing a state run on a strict interpretation of Islamic law.
The Hayat Hotel is popular with politicians and other state officials, though there has been no indication yet that any were caught up in the fighting.
The US State Department said in a statement: "The United States strongly condemns the al Shabaab attack at the Hayat Hotel in Mogadishu.
"We express our heartfelt condolences to the families who lost loved ones, wish a full recovery to those injured, and commend Somalia's security forces.
"The United States remains steadfast in our support of Somali and African Union-led efforts to counter terrorism and build a secure and prosperous future for the people of Somalia."
Friday's attack is the first since new Somali president Hassan Sheikh Mohamud took office in May.
In August 2020, al Shabaab said it was behind an attack on another hotel in Mogadishu in which at least 16 people were killed.