Sporadic gun battles at Kenya mall after extremist attack kills 59; militants hold hostages

NAIROBI, Kenya — Kenyan military forces engaged in sporadic gun battles Sunday with the Islamic extremists holding an unknown number of hostages inside an upscale Nairobi mall, as officials said the death toll from a grenade-and-gunfire siege a day earlier rose to 59, with at least 175 wounded.

The hostage crisis passed the 24-hour mark and fears rose of a protracted standoff with terrorists using hostages as pawns. Kenyan security forces were seen entering Westgate Mall with at least two rocket-propelled grenades, heavy weaponry for a potential indoor battle with hostages present

Elite military units were inside the Westgate mall, and volleys of gunfire continued into the afternoon Sunday. Two wounded Kenyan soldiers were seen being carried out of the mall in the morning.

Kenyan security officials didn’t — or couldn’t — say how many people the estimated 10 to 15 terrorists were holding hostage. Kenya’s Red Cross said in a statement citing police that 49 people had been reported missing. Officials did not make an explicit link but that number could form the basis of the number of people held hostage.

Former Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga told reporters at the mall that he had been told officials couldn’t determine the exact number of hostages, amid indications that Israeli military personnel were providing Kenya’s military assistance.

“There are quite a number of people still being held hostage on the third floor and the basement area where the terrorists are still in charge,” Odinga said.

Kenyan security officials sought to reassure the families of hostages inside but implied that hostages could be killed. Interior Cabinet Secretary Joseph Lenku said the security operation was “delicate” because Kenyan forces hoped to ensure the hostages are evacuated safely.

“The priority is to save as many lives as possible,” Lenku said. More than 1,000 people escaped the attack inside the mall on Saturday, he said.

Britain’s prime minister, in confirming the deaths of three British nationals, told the country to “prepare ourselves for further bad news.”

“It’s an extremely difficult situation but we’re doing everything we can to help the Kenyans in their hours of need,” David Cameron said.

More than 175 people were injured in the attack, Lenku said, including many children. Kenyan forces were in control of the mall’s security cameras, Lenku said. Combined military and police forces surrounded the mall in the Westlands neighborhood of Nairobi, an area frequented by foreigners and wealthy Kenyans.

“Violent extremists continue to occupy Westgate Mall. Security services are there in full force,” said the United States embassy in an emergency text message issued Sunday morning advising Americans to stay indoors and close to home.

Somalia’s al-Qaida-linked rebel group, al-Shabab, claimed responsibility for the attack in which they used grenades and assault rifles and specifically targeted non-Muslims. The rebels said the attack was retribution for Kenyan forces’ 2011 push into Somalia.

SOURCE, ABUGIDA YEADERA EDA