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Gunmen in Kenya Mount Deadly Attack on University Gunmen in Kenya Mount Deadly Attack on University
(35 minutes later)
NAIROBI, Kenya — Gunmen attacked a university in eastern Kenya early Thursday, killing at least two people and wounding dozens more as they fought with armed officers and forced their way into student dormitories, the police said. NAIROBI, Kenya — Gunmen attacked a university in eastern Kenya early Thursday, killing at least two people and wounding scores more as they fought with armed officers and forced their way into student dormitories, the police said.
The National Disaster Operation Center of Kenya said two people had been killed and 29 others had been admitted to a hospital, most with gunshot wounds. Four critically wounded people were airlifted to Nairobi, the capital, for treatment, the center said on Twitter. The National Disaster Operation Center of Kenya said two people had been killed and 65 others had been admitted to a hospital as a result of the attack at Garissa University College, most with gunshot wounds. Four critically wounded people were airlifted to Nairobi, the capital, for treatment, the center said on Twitter.
The attack began around 5:30 a.m., with gunmen shooting at guards at a main gate at Garissa University College in eastern Kenya, about 100 miles from the border with Somalia, according to a written statement from the Kenyan National Police Service. Police officers guarding the campus “responded swiftly and engaged the gunmen in a fierce shootout, however the attackers retreated and gained entry into the hostels,” the statement said. Augustine Alanga, 21, said he had been asleep in his dormitory room when the shooting began at around 5:30 a.m. Startled and afraid, he said, he had bolted from his room, forgetting to put on his shoes and cutting his feet as he sprinted across the campus and into a nearby forest.
Security services were trying to force the gunmen out of the dormitories, the police said Thursday morning. Around 11 a.m., three of four student hostels had been evacuated, and “the attackers have been cornered in one hostel,” the Interior Ministry said on Twitter. “When I looked back I saw them. There were five or six of them. They were masked. And they were shooting live rounds,” Mr. Alanga, an economics student, said. “I was barefoot, and I didn’t have time to wear slippers or shoes. They were shooting at me.”
More than six hours after the violence began on Thursday, the university remained on lockdown as security forces battled the assailants while students remained trapped inside dormitories, classrooms and other buildings, witnesses and officials said.
“It is ongoing. There are students that are being held against their will by these terrorists in the dormitories,” Abbas Gullet, secretary general of the Kenyan Red Cross, said by telephone.
The attack began at dawn, when the gunmen forced their way onto the campus by shooting at the guards at the main gate, according to a statement issued by the Office of the Inspector General of the National Police Service in Nairobi, Kenya’s capital.
“Police officers who were at the time guarding the students’ hostels heard the gunshots and responded swiftly and engaged the gunmen in a fierce shootout, however, the attackers retreated and gained entry into the hostels,” the statement said. “Security agencies arrived and are currently engaged in an elaborate process of flushing out the gunmen.”
Around 11 a.m., three of four student hostels had been evacuated, and “the attackers have been cornered in one hostel,” the Interior Ministry said on Twitter.
The attackers were not immediately identified, but recent security warnings in Kenya have emphasized a risk of attack by the Shabab, the Islamist militant group based in Somalia.The attackers were not immediately identified, but recent security warnings in Kenya have emphasized a risk of attack by the Shabab, the Islamist militant group based in Somalia.
A statement by the United States Embassy in Nairobi said that “according to the reports, there have been explosions and heavy gunfire at the school; hostages have been taken and Al Shabab has claimed responsibility for the attack.”A statement by the United States Embassy in Nairobi said that “according to the reports, there have been explosions and heavy gunfire at the school; hostages have been taken and Al Shabab has claimed responsibility for the attack.”
In 2013, an attack by the Shabab on an upscale mall in Nairobi killed 67 people.In 2013, an attack by the Shabab on an upscale mall in Nairobi killed 67 people.
In March, the embassies of Australia, the United States and Britain issued security alerts about possible terrorist attacks.In March, the embassies of Australia, the United States and Britain issued security alerts about possible terrorist attacks.
“Potential targets for attacks could include hotels, restaurants, nightclubs, shopping malls, diplomatic missions, transportation hubs, religious institutions, government offices, or public transportation,” the United States Embassy warned after the reported death of Adan Garar, a Shabab leader, in March.“Potential targets for attacks could include hotels, restaurants, nightclubs, shopping malls, diplomatic missions, transportation hubs, religious institutions, government offices, or public transportation,” the United States Embassy warned after the reported death of Adan Garar, a Shabab leader, in March.