4 dead as militants lay siege to a hotel in Somalia

MOGADISHU: Somali forces closed in on Monday on Al-Shabaab militants laying siege to a popular hotel in the capital, Mogadishu, where at least four people have been killed in an ongoing attack. The crackle of gunfire could still be heard coming from the besieged Villa Rose 18 hours after the Islamists stormed the hotel in central Mogadishu in a hail of bullets and explosions. Mohamed Dahir, an official from the national security agency, told AFP that government forces had taken control of the hotel and pinned the insurgents down in a top-floor room. “The terrorist gunmen are trapped inside a room in the hotel and the security forces are close to ending the siege very soon,” he told AFP. “So far we have confirmed the death of four people”, he said, adding that government officials were among those wounded.

The Villa Rose is frequented by members of parliament and located in a secure central part of the capital just a few blocks from the office of Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud. Al-Shabaab, a militant group affiliated to Al-Qaeda that has been trying to overthrow Somalia’s central government for 15 years, claimed responsibility for the attack. Police said the gunmen rushed into the hotel in Bondhere district at around 8:00 pm on Sunday and an operation was under way to “eliminate” them.

Retaliatory attacks

Witnesses near the scene described still hearing loud explosions and gunfire on Monday morning. “I saw several military vehicles with special forces heading towards the hotel, and a few minutes later there was heavy gunfire and explosions,” said witness Mahad Yare. In a statement late on Sunday, the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS), a 20,000-strong military force drawn from across the continent, praised the “swift” security response to the attack. The Villa Rose website describes the hotel as