KENYA: Attackers Storm Nairobi Mall, Killing At Least 20

Nairobi, Sep 21, 2013 (SDN)  -Gunmen stormed a popular high-end shopping mall in the Kenyan capital Saturday afternoon, lobbing grenades and firing weapons in an attack that left at least 20 people dead, dozens injured and scores of shoppers and store employees trapped. “We have taken so many to the hospital,” said Zulekha Khalid, a Kenyan Red Cross worker taking cover behind a police truck as a barrage of bullets was fired from the direction of the Westgate Premier Shopping Mall. The Red Cross estimated that in addition to the dead, more than 50 people were injured in the attack, and Khalid said that the casualty figures were expected to rise.

While the attackers’ motives remained unclear, one injured victim said the attackers had ordered Muslims to leave the premises, in an apparent attempt to target non-Muslims. The victim, an American, told this to a friend, who recounted it to a Washington Post reporter. Other witnesses gave similar accounts to other news organizations.

Police initially characterized the assault, one of the most brazen here in recent memory, as a robbery gone wrong. But senior Kenyan officials, including officials at the East African nation’s Interior Ministry, later said it was likely a terrorist attack. Some witnesses and security officials said the assailants numbered no more than five, while others said there were as many 10 or 15. Some witnesses said one was a woman.

By early evening, the attackers were holed up on an upper floor of the mall, holding hostages, according to police officials and security officers at the scene. Kenyan military and police units had entered the building and were seeking to capture or kill the gang. Scores of people remained inside, huddling in stores, banks, even closets, praying the attackers would not find them. Outside, their relatives frantically sent them text messages on cellphones, comforting them as best as they could.

Earlier, many of those who had filtered out with the help of security personnel were in tears, their faces revealing the anguish of their ordeal. Some collapsed on the asphalt, while others had to be carried out on stretchers, covered in blood from bullet wounds. Ambulances waited outside to ferry the wounded to hospitals around Nairobi.

Outside the mall entrance, two corpses lay on the ground, next to cars peppered with bullet holes. More bodies lay inside the mall, according to wire service photos.

The dead and injured included young and old, Kenyans and foreigners, including at least two Americans, according to witnesses.

Several children were reported injured. The mall — particularly the ArtCaffe, an eatery known for its brunch menus and bakery — is a popular hangout for Westerners and middle-class Kenyans.

In Washington, the State Department issued a statement condemning what it called “a senseless act of violence” and saying it was following the unfolding situation closely.

“Our condolences go out to the families and friends of all victims,” deputy spokeswoman Marie Harf said. “We have reports of American citizens injured in the attack, and the U.S. Embassy is actively reaching out to provide assistance. Due to privacy considerations, we have no further comment on American citizens at this time.”

Outside the mall on Saturday afternoon, Christopher Wamalwa said: “My wife and two kids are inside. They are locked inside a store, and gunmen are shooting around them.” Wamalwa, a member of Kenya’s parliament, said he had spoken with his wife on her cellphone.

Matthew Den Dulk said his wife was hiding in one of the banks in the mall.

“My wife told me there’s a large group of people armed to the teeth with grenades and AK-47s,” Den Dulk said.

Annamaria Watrin, an American aid worker from Minnesota, said a friend and his teenage daughter had gone to the mall for a birthday party. “As they went to park their car, she saw five gunmen pop out. They shot her dad. He died,” Watrin said. The girl was injured.

As of early Saturday evening, no group had claimed responsibility for the attack. But suspicion immediately fell on al-Shabab, the Somali al-Qaeda-linked militia that has staged numerous attacks around Kenya over the past two years. Kenya is a key military actor in neighboring Somalia, having sent troops to fight al-Shabab in October 2011.

The militia also orchestrated the twin bombings in Kampala, Uganda, in July 2010 during the World Cup there, killing more than 70 people. The attack, the militia said, was in retaliation for Ugandan soldiers taking part in an African force sent to protect Somalia’s government.

At social gatherings, many middle-class Kenyans and expatriates have long voiced concern about a possible attack on Westgate and other upscale shopping centers and restaurants in Nairobi. Guards at the malls check vehicles for explosives and use hand-held metal scans on shoppers, but they are mostly unarmed, incapable of responding to a heavily armed attack.

Source: washingtonpost