A minimum of 12 people were killed in an attack on a hotel in Mogadishu by Islamist militants al Shabaab.
The attackers stormed the Hayat Hotel, a popular site for local politicians, on Friday evening, detonating bombs before opening fire in the first major attack by the al-Qaeda-linked Islamist group since a new president took office this year.
A Somali intelligence officer said that at least 12 people were killed, according to Reuters. Aamin Ambulance (an independent emergency organization based in Mogadishu) had earlier stated that it had transported 10 patients with injuries and two bodies.
Al-Shabaab, which has long terrorised the country and wants to overthrow the government, has claimed responsibility, according the Site Intelligence Group, which monitors jihadist group statements.
This is the first major attack of al-Shabaab’s leaders since Hassan Sheikh Mohamud was elected president in early June.
Harun Maruf is the author of Inside al-Shabaab said from Mogadishu on Saturday morning that, after 18 hours, “government security forces are fighting their way hard to end the siege in a tough battle”. He stated that the death toll could be even higher.
Unverified videos posted on social media show an explosion blasting one side of the hotel’s rooftop and black smoke billowing from the site. Aamin Ambulance’s founder, Abdulkadir Adan, tweeted late on Friday from the capital that “gunfire can be heard in the vicinity”.
Al-Shabaab also carried out numerous deadly attacks in Somalia. In 2019, 22 civilians were killed in an attack on the Dusit complex, Nairobi. Three US servicemen were killed and three others were injured when the group attacked a US military base in northern Kenya.
The US Africa Command estimates that there are between 5,000 to 10,000 fighters in the country of 15mn. They also control large swathes of central and southern Somalia.
In May, US president Joe Biden approved the establishment of a small but “persistent” military presence in Somalia, reversing the Trump administration’s withdrawal of troops from the country in the Horn of Africa.
As the African Union Mission in Somalia is being wound down, Biden’s decision stemmed from growing concern about the threat posed by al-Shabaab, with one senior US official calling it “al-Qaeda’s largest global affiliate”.
Last weekend, a US air strike killed 13 militants of al-Shabaab, “that were actively attacking Somali National Army forces in a remote location near Teedaan”, in central Somalia, the US Africa Command said in a statement.
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