31 dead, 40 wounded in Somalia as extremists attack restaurant
MOGADISHU, Somalia — Islamic extremists attacked a popular Somalia restaurant and killed 31 people — many at pointblank range — before they were slain Thursday by security forces, police said Thursday.
Survivors described harrowing scenes of hiding under tables and behind curtains as the five gunmen hunted for victims in the darkened Pizza House restaurant. Nearly 40 people were wounded.
Al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the attack, which began Wednesday evening with a car bomb exploding at the gate to the restaurant and ended when troops secured the site after dawn, said senior police Capt. Mohamed Hussein.
“I never thought Iwould have the chance to see the sun again. They were killing people on sight,” said university student Saida Hussein. She said she survived by hiding behind a large table.
Soldiers in gun-mounted vehicles surrounded the building, and troops later entered the ground floor as al-Shabab snipers defended their positions upstairs.
The bodies of five girls believed to have been killed by the extremists were found in the restaurant, police said. The body of a Syrian man who worked as a chef lay near a bullet marked wall.
The car bomb that began the attack blew the roofs off the restaurant and other nearby buildings. Many of the first victims were young men who had been entering the Pizza House when the bomb went off, Hussein said. The extremists, appearing to pose as security forces, then rushed inside the restaurant.
A neighboring restaurant, Posh Treats, was damaged in the blast, security officials said. Security forces rescued Asian, Ethiopian, Kenyan and other workers at Posh Treats, Hussein said.