At least 3 killed as Somali extremists attack restaurant

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At least 3 killed as Somali extremists attack restaurant

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — A suicide car bomber rammed the gates of a restaurant near a beach in Somalia's capital before gunmen fought their way into the building in an attack claimed by an Islamic extremist group that killed at least three people on Thursday, a police official said.

The assailants may have taken some hostages inside the Liido Seafood restaurant, which is popular with Mogadishu's elite and government officials, Capt. Mohamed Hussein said. It wasn't immediately clear if any senior officials were trapped in the restaurant.

"The operation (to overpower the attackers) is ongoing now. The (attackers) are still inside and fighting our troops," Hussein said from the scene of the attack as gunfire rang out in the background. He said he had counted at least three bodies outside the restaurant.

An unknown number of people are still trapped inside the restaurant, and the death toll is likely to rise when the attack is over, he said, adding that darkness is hampering efforts by the security forces to overwhelm the assailants.

Gunfire could be heard inside the restaurant, suggesting that the gunmen were killing civilians trapped inside, he said.

"The place was packed when the (gunmen) came, so the number of casualties will probably rise," he said.

Islamic extremist group al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the attack, in a broadcast on its online radio late Thursday.

Witnesses said that gunmen shouted "Allahu akbar," the Arabic phrase for "God is great," and entered the restaurant from the direction of the beach as clients, sitting behind razor wire, watched the seashore.

"They randomly fired at the people sitting near the beach before entering the restaurant," said witness Ahmed Nur, who was strolling along on the shoreline when the attack happened.

Al-Shabab attacked Kenyan peacekeepers in southwestern Somalia last week. The al-Qaida-linked group claimed it had killed about 100 Kenyans and seized armaments and military vehicles. The Kenyan government has given no death toll, saying broadly that there were some fatalities.

Despite being pushed out of Somalia's major cities and towns, al-Shabab continues to launch deadly guerrilla attacks across the Horn of Africa country. African Union troops, government officials and foreigners are frequently targeted.


-- (c) Associated Press 2016-01-22

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Al-Shabaab gun and bomb attack targets Somalian beach-side cafés



MOGADISHU: -- Militant group Al-Shabaab has claimed responsibility for a bomb and gun attack in and around beach-side restaurants in the Somalian capital, Mogadishu.

Initial reports suggest at least five people have been killed, although officials say they “cannot know” exactly how many casualties there are.

The first of two car bombs went off just after 7pm local time. Witnesses say at least five gunmen approached from Lido beach soon after before a second explosion half an hour later.

Major Farah Abdulle, a police officer at the scene said:
“The second car bomb has just exploded and the fighters are still inside. We cannot know the number of casualties inside.”

Somali Prime Minister, Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke, condemned the assualt.

An Al-Shabaab spokesman told Reuters news agency they were in control of the Beach View café and said there were “many casualties” both inside and outside the building.

The group, which is aligned with al Qaeda, stormed an African Union military base in the south of Somalia last week. It says it wants to overthrow the country’s Western-backed government and impose a strict version of Islamic law nationwide.


-- (c) Copyright Euronews 2016-01-22