Mogadishu hotel attack kills a dozen

At least 12 people were killed in an Islamist attack on a hotel in Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu. Most of the victims were civilians, an intelligence service representative said. According to him, the operation was still not completed on Saturday morning. The radical Islamist militia Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack. Extremists have been trying to overthrow the government for years.

The attackers broke into the hotel on Friday night. According to eyewitnesses, large parts of the building were destroyed in subsequent skirmishes with government forces. Explosions could be heard repeatedly throughout the night.

Police officer Mohamed Dahir said more than 60 guests were rescued from the “Hayat” hotel, which was besieged by terrorists, on Friday night. However, it is still assumed that there are still many guests in the building.

According to police, the extremists initially set off four explosions and then stormed the hotel, which is popular with government officials, journalists and business people. Outside the hotel, there were violent exchanges of fire with security forces. Thick clouds of smoke rose from the hotel building.

Al-Shabaab said he killed at least 20 people. It is the first large-scale act of terrorism since Somalia’s newly elected president, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, took office in May. The Horn of Africa country, with about 16 million inhabitants, has been shaken for years by the terrorist group’s attacks. Al-Shabaab controls much of the southern and central regions. The terrorist group repeatedly carries out attacks against security forces, politicians and civilians.