Militants stormed a hotel in the Somali capital Mogadishu last night, killing at least nine people, in an attack claimed by al-Shabab, though police managed to stop the attack, shooting four of the attackers dead.
The attackers set off a car bomb outside the heavily fortified Somali Youth hotel before moving in.
Another explosion, 40 minutes after the first, also targeted a popular park known as the Peace Garden.
Al-Shabab told the BBC they were “in control” of the hotel.
“We have attacked the SYL Hotel and we’ve forced our way into the hotel,” the BBC reports the Islamist militia group to have said.
Residents however said the attackers were repulsed by security forces and did not manage to get into the hotel.
The hotel, situated near the presidential palace, is popular with government personnel.
Eyewitnesses at the Peace Garden said there were many people in the park at the time of the attack.
Somalia has over the years been rocked by an insurgency waged by al-Shabaab who seek to impose an Islamist state in the country.
