ATTACK ON UPMARKET COMPLEX LEFT 14 DEAD

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta said yesterday that Islamists who stormed an upmarket hotel complex, killing 14 people, had been “eliminated” after an almost 20-hour siege in which hundreds of civilians were rescued.

At least one suicide bomber blew himself up and gunmen engaged security forces in numerous shootouts during the assault on the DusitD2 compound, which includes a 101room hotel, spa, restaurant and office buildings.

The attack was claimed by the Al Qaida-linked Somali group Al Shabab, which has repeatedly targeted Kenya since it sent its army into Somalia in October 2011 to fight the terrorist group.

The sight of armed Islamists and terrified civilians fleeing reminded Kenyans of a 2013 Al Shabab attack on the Westgate mall that left 67 dead in a siege that stretched out over four days and led to sharp criticism of the security response.

Evacuation

In a televised address, Kenyatta said some 700 civilians had been evacuated throughout the attack at DusitD2.

“I can confirm that ... the security operation at Dusit complex is over and all the terrorists eliminated,” Kenyatta said in a televised address to the nation.

“As of this moment, we have confirmation that 14 innocent lives were lost to the ... terrorists, with others injured.”

Police sources and a mortuary official had previously reported 15 dead.

CCTV footage broadcast on local media showed four black-clad, heavily armed men entering the complex on Tuesday afternoon.

At least one of them blew himself up at the start of the attack. A police source said two attackers had been shot dead yesterday morning after a prolonged shootout.

“The two have red bandannas tied around their forehead and bullets strapped around their chest with several magazines each,” the senior police officer said. ■ ■ ■

Al Qaida links:

Al Shabab stem from Somalia’s Islamic Courts that controlled central and southern Somalia for six months in 2006 before being ousted by Ethiopian troops. In 2010, Al Shabab declared their allegiance to Al Qaida. It is estimated to count between 5,000 and 9,000 men. Since the death in September 2014 of Ahmad Abdi Godane, killed in a US strike, their leader has been Ahmad Diriye.

Al Shabab began a spate of bloody attacks in neighbouring Kenya since its troops intervened in Somalia in 2011. The deadliest of these took place on April 2, 2015 when Al Shabab killed 148 people at Garissa University. In September 2013, Al Shabab claimed responsibility for a dramatic raid on the Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi that killed 67 people over a four-day siege.

Spate of attacks: Other countries under attack:

In 2010, Al Shabab claimed responsibility for a twin attack in Kampala, the