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Somalia: Al-Shabab attack kills 15 in Mogadishu hotel | |
(about 2 hours later) | |
Al-Shabab Islamist militants have attacked a hotel in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, killing at least 15 people. | |
Gunmen used a vehicle packed with explosives to blast their way into the Sahafi hotel compound before storming the building, police said. | Gunmen used a vehicle packed with explosives to blast their way into the Sahafi hotel compound before storming the building, police said. |
Victims included at least one MP and the general who led the 2012 offensive that drove al-Shabab out of Mogadishu. | |
African Union troops and government forces say they have regained control of the hotel after a fierce gun battle. | African Union troops and government forces say they have regained control of the hotel after a fierce gun battle. |
The hotel is popular with Somalia's members of parliament. | The hotel is popular with Somalia's members of parliament. |
A website associated with al-Shabab claimed responsibility, saying that fighters from the al-Qaeda-linked group had infiltrated the hotel after an explosion. | |
The owner of the hotel and Gen Abdikarim Dhagabadan, who commanded the operation against al-Shabab in 2012, were among the victims. | |
The attack comes a day after deadly clashes between jihadist fighters and African Union (AU) troops in the Bakool region near the border with Ethiopia. | The attack comes a day after deadly clashes between jihadist fighters and African Union (AU) troops in the Bakool region near the border with Ethiopia. |
The AU is helping the government battle al-Shabab. | |
Security in Somalia has improved, but al-Shabab still attacks Mogadishu regularly. | Security in Somalia has improved, but al-Shabab still attacks Mogadishu regularly. |
The militants have also targeted neighbouring countries, killing almost 150 people in an assault on Garissa University College in Kenya in April. | The militants have also targeted neighbouring countries, killing almost 150 people in an assault on Garissa University College in Kenya in April. |