Deaths in hotel shootout

Mogadishu: Nine people died in a weekend attack at a hotel in the Somali capital of Mogadishu, and security forces ended the assault by al Qaedalinked al Shabaab fighters yesterday, a police spokesman said.

A suicide car bomb exploded on Sunday and was followed by a shootout between al Shabaab militants and security forces at the Hotel Afrik. The fighting lasted into yesterday.

Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble said in a statement that among those killed was former military general Mohamed Nur Galal.

Al Shabaab has battled since 2008 to overthrow Somalia’s central government and establish its rule, based on its own harsh interpretation of Islamic law. — Reuters