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Mogadishu attack: Gunmen attack Lido beach restaurant Mogadishu attack: 20 killed as Al-Shabaab gunmen storm beachfront restaurant in Somalia
(about 13 hours later)
Gunmen set of two car bombs and killed at least three people in an attack on a beachside restaurant in Mogadishu, Somalia. At least 20 people have died in a terrorist attack in Somalia. A siege at a beachfront restaurant in the capital Mogadishu ended this morning after more than eight hours.
Al-Shabaab have claimed responsibility for the attack on Mogadishu's Lido beach. Islamic extremist group al-Shabab has claimed responsibility for the attack.
A car bomb was rammed into the Beach View Hotel around dusk, after which several fighters opened fire, witnesses said. The security forces took control of the restaurant just before dawn, said Captain Mohamed Hussein, speaking from the scene of the attack in Mogadishu. 
An hour later, a second explosion hit the nearby Lido Seafood restaurant. Gunmen are reportedly holed up in the restaurant.  It was not clear whether Hussein's report of more than 20 killed included the assailants. Members of al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack in a broadcast on its online radio late on Thursday. 
"We are inside and control the cafe," Sheikh Abdiasis Abu Musab, Al-Shabaab group's military spokesman, said. "I was intending to go out but suddenly we heard a heavy explosion followed by gunfire. ... I saw a militant fighter shooting indiscriminately on everybody. Then I locked myself inside a room until we were evacuated peacefully by the security forces," said Abdulkadir Mohamed Somow, who had been trapped inside the restaurant. 
"There are many casualties lying inside and outside the cafe." Blasts and bursts of gunfire could be heard as Somali special forces went from room to room pursuing the al-Shabaab gunmen who were holed up inside the restaurant. 
Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke, the Somali Prime Minister, condemned the attack on Twitter.  Hussein, the police official, said the security forces rescued many people who had been trapped inside the restaurant's hall, where a party was taking place when the attack started on Thursday. 
More casualties are expected. An eye witness told The BBC that a wedding ceremony was taking place in the hall of the restaurant when the attack happened.
This article will be updated as the situation develops Witnesses said that gunmen entered the restaurant from the direction of the beach. They shouted "Allahu akbar," the Arabic phrase for "God is great," as they attacked. 
"They randomly fired at people sitting near the beach before entering the restaurant,”" said witness Ahmed Nur, who was strolling along the shoreline when the attack happened. 
Al-Shabaab attacked Kenyan peacekeepers in southwestern Somalia last week.
The al-Qaeda-linked group said it had killed about 100 Kenyans and seized weapons and military vehicles.
The Kenyan government has given no death toll, but said there were some fatalities. 
Despite being pushed out of Somalia's major cities and towns, al-Shabaab continues to launch deadly guerrilla attacks across the Horn of Africa country.
African Union troops, government officials and foreigners are frequently targeted.