Mogadishu: Twenty-eight people were killed on Wednesday when Al-Shabaab fighters struck a popular Mogadishu hotel, setting off two car bombs and opening fire on security guards, according to the city’s main ambulance service.
“The number of casualties we have recorded today is 28 dead and 43 wounded. This is what we have confirmed with our teams but there were also other ambulances which carried some casualties (but) I don’t know how many,” said Dr Abukadir Abdirahman Adem, head of the ambulance service.
Survivors described chaotic scenes in which hotel residents hid themselves under beds and others jumped out of windows of the four-story building to escape the extremist attackers.
“They kicked down room doors and at some point posed themselves as rescue teams by telling those inside to come out (only) to kill them,” said Hassan Nur, a traditional Somali elder.
