Al Shabaab Militants Attack Somali Hotel, Kill 11

  

Two bombs ripped into a hotel in the Somali capital on Sunday and security forces fought Islamist al Shabaab gunmen who stormed inside the building for hours afterwards, police and witnesses said. At least 11 people were killed.

Al Shabaab, which has frequently launched attacks in Mogadishu in its bid to topple the Western-backed government, said it was behind t

he assault on the Sahafi hotel where government officials and lawmakers stay.

“Mujahideen (fighters) entered and took over Sahafi hotel where enemies lived,” Sheikh Abdiasis Abu Musab, al Shabaab’s military operations spokesman, told Reuters.

The incident mirrored tactics used before by al Shabaab, in which it detonates bombs to break through security at targets and then sends in fighters.

Major Ahmed Nur, a police officer, told Reuters that a car bomb rammed the entrance to the hotel and was followed by second blast, which a security guard said was a second vehicle bomb.

Police said at least 11 people were killed, including the hotel owner, a lawmaker, a former military commander, a radio journalist and other civilians.

“We have also rescued many government officials by a ladder through the back wall,” said Major Ismail Nur, another police officer.