At least 20 people died in the long siege in Mogadishu between Friday night and Saturday night.Security forces fought Al-Shabaab militants who were hiding inside the Hayat Hotel and filled it with explosives for over 30 hours. Authorities claimed that more than 100 hostages were released.
Abdullahi Maalin Gaafoow stated that he was inside with his two friends. They got up to leave just moments before the attack started.“Just minutes before the explosions, two of our friends, may God give them paradise, named Hassan Yalahow, and Abdirashid, said they would be leaving. But, seconds later, both were killed by the blast.”The politician described the terror scene after the first explosions as “_”_People fled in panic. They ran towards the safest place they believed they would be safe. The hotel started to fill with smoke and flames, and I saw immediately one of the hotel bodyguards being bled and another man being wounded.
Two suicide bombings were followed by multiple gunmen entering the building and attacking civilians. Al-Shabaab, an al-Qaeda-linked group which frequently commits attacks to try to destabilize government, claimed responsibility for the attack. The hotel was destroyed in the battle, but its manager warned that explosives might still be hiding inside.
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