Kenyan special forces were today locked in a fight to the death with Islamic terrorists who have been barricaded inside a Nairobi mall with up to 40 hostages since Saturday.
Witnesses described hearing four large explosions at the Westgate Shopping Centre followed by the sight of thick plumes of smoke and the sounds of fierce gunfire after the military tried to break the three day siege by gaining access from the roof.
It is feared that some of the gunmen, who are from Al Qaeda affiliated group Al Shabaab, may have blown themselves up, though a Kenyan government minister said that militants had set fire to some mattresses in a supermarket as a decoy.
Interior Minister Joseph Ole Lenku said that two of the terrorists had been killed and that most hostages were now free. All of the militants were men, he added, although some were dressed as women. ‘We think the operation will come to an end soon’, he said. ‘We are in control of all the floors, the terrorists are running and hiding in some stores… there is no room for escape’.
The Red Cross has put the death toll at 62 and four Britons have been confirmed dead.. At least 175 were injured, including children.
The statement read: ‘We authorise the mujahedeen inside the building to take actions against the prisoners as much as they are pressed.
‘We are telling Christians advancing onto the mujahedeen to have mercy for their prisoners who will bear the brunt of any force directed against the mujahedeen.’
There were conflicting reports about the identity of the attackers. Al Shabaab claimed on Twitter last night that the group was being led by Samantha Lewthwaite, who was married to Jermaine Lindsay, one of the 7/7 suicide bombers.
Known as the White Widow, she is wanted by Kenyan police over links to a suspected terrorist cell planning bomb attacks
A link between Lewthwaite and the Westgate attack was made after soldiers claimed they had seen a white woman in a veil shouting orders to gunman in Arabic.
Meanwhile, a Twitter account claiming to represent Al Shabaab yesterday claimed that terrorists from seven nations are involved in the attack, including the U.S., Britain and Canada.
The HSM Press Office account, which has been suspended twice, claimed the group were Ahmed Nasir Shirdoon, 24, from London, UK; Gen Mustafe Noorduiin, 27, from Kansas City, U.S., Abdifatah Osman Keenadiid, 24, from Minneapolis, U.S., and Ahmed Mohamad Isse, 22, from Saint Paul, U.S; Ismael Guled, 23, from Finland; Abdirizak Mouled, 24, from Ontario, Canada; and Zaki Jama Caraale, 20, and Sayid Nuh, 25, both from Somalia.
A top Kenyan military official said he believes the attackers are ‘a multinational collection from all over the world.’
General Julius Karangi said fighters from an array of nations participated in the attack claimed by Al Shabaab, a Somali group allies with al-Qaida. We have an idea who they are, their nationality and even the number. We are fighting global terrorism here and we have sufficient intel (intelligence) to suggest that.’
As the stand-off entered its third day, sustained bursts of rapid gunfire erupted at dawn and lasted 15 minutes, and soldiers posted around the complex ducked for cover.
This was followed by three big explosions, AFP correspondents at the scene said.
A Kenyan special forces officer said troops had moved in to end the siege with force.
‘I saw them only once, I could not see them much,” he said. ‘It was hide-and-seek, hide-and-seek, hide-and-seek. In the end we had to use full force, we had to finish with these guys.’
A French woman said she was freed by the Islamic terrorists because they told her they only wanted to kill Kenyans and Americans.
The woman, who only gave her name as Pauline, said she escaped with her two young children, who were given Mars bars by the gunmen.
Pauline said she was asked for forgiveness by the terrorists who told her ‘we are not monsters’.
The mother of two, who was in the supermarket when the attack began, said once she agreed Muslims were not ‘bad people’ they gave her children, Emily, 6, and Eliot, 4, chocolate.
She told The Independent: ‘He said we only only want to kill Kenyans and Americans. He then told me I had to change my religion to Islam and said “do you forgive us? do you forgive us?’
She said she was able to escape with another two children, including a wounded 12-year-old boy whose mother had been murdered
