Dozens dead in terror attack on Somali hotel

The Somali terror group al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for an attack on a hotel over the weekend that left at least 26 people dead, including several foreigners. The insurgents first set off a car bomb at the Asasey Hotel in the port city of Kismayo, Somalia, on Friday evening before launching a gunfire siege that lasted more than 14 hours. Responding troops ended the attack when they killed all the insurgents. Regional politicians and elders were inside the hotel discussing an upcoming election when the attack began.

The fatalities included three Kenyans, three Tanzanians, two Americans, and one Briton. Hodan Nalayeh, a prominent Canadian-Somali journalist, and her husband also died in the attack. Ahmed Madobe, the president of Jubbaland regional state, said about 56 other people sustained injuries.

Francisco Madeira, an African Union representative, condemned the violence: “This is an attack meant to derail progress in Somalia as the country rebuilds and consolidates the gains made on peace and security.”