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People run from the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya, on Saturday, after gunmen attacked with grenades and gunfire. At least 20 people are reported to have died in the attack.
Jason Straziuso/AP
People run from the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya, on Saturday, after gunmen attacked with grenades and gunfire. At least 20 people are reported to have died in the attack.
Jason Straziuso/AP
An upscale mall in Kenya was the scene of gunfire and explosions Saturday, after a group of attackers used grenades to strike during lunch hour in Nairobi. Updates from the scene indicate at least 20 deaths and more than twice that number wounded. We’ll add more news to this post as it emerges.
“Rob Vandijk, who works at the Dutch embassy, said he was eating at a restaurant inside the mall when attackers lobbed hand grenades inside the building,” the AP reports. “He said gunfire then burst out and people screamed as they dropped to the ground.”
The AP reports that police arrived at the mall roughly 30 minutes after the attack began. A gun battle ensued; the situation is now being described as a standoff. Sporadic gunfire is being reported from the scene. A motive for the attack is not yet known.
Update at 10:46 a.m. ET: Teargas Fired Outside Mall
Government troops and police have fired teargas in the area outside the mall, in a move to disperse the large crowds of people and members of the media who had gathered there.
Live footage showed several reporters on the scene doing their best to speak about what was happening — although at least one, a reporter for Kenya’s KTN TV, declared that he could no longer open his eyes. The coverage soon shifted to a report from a hospital.
Update at 10:38 a.m. ET: Military Troops Join Police At Mall
Heavily armed members of the Kenya Defense Forces have now joined the police in taking up positions in and around the mall, where moments ago, more people were brought out of the facility. Officials on the scene and on Twitter are telling crowds that have gathered in the area to leave for their own safety.
Update at 10:20 a.m. ET: At Least 20 Killed, 50 Injured, Red Cross Says
The Kenyan Red Cross has updated its account of the attack, saying that at least 20 people have died and another 50 were wounded in the attack on Westgate mall.
Those figures have been reported by Kenyan media; CNN attributes them to Abbas Gullet, head of the Kenyan Red Cross. Government representatives have not yet provided an official account of the incident.
Update at 10:05 a.m. ET: Non-Muslims Reportedly Targeted
The AP has gathered accounts from witnesses, one of whom says the attackers told Muslims that they would come to no harm.
“The gunmen told Muslims to stand up and leave. They were safe, and non-Muslims would be targeted,” mall visitor Elijah Kamau tells the news service.
Another witness, Manish Turohit, 18, tells the AP the gunmen were armed with AK-47s and wore vests with hand grenades on them.
“They just came in and threw a grenade. We were running and they opened fire,” he says. “They were shouting and firing.”
Turohit escaped serious harm after hiding in a parking deck, the AP says.
More hostages have been released in the past 30 minutes — and the authorities say they’re interviewing those people to be sure they hadn’t played a role in the attack.
“We are not taking chances and rescued hostages are screened,” Police Inspector General David Kimaiyo said in a tweet sent earlier Saturday.
When the incident first began, police and witness reports suggested it may have been an attack on a store, or a bank. But Nairobi police chief Benson Kibue has since said the attack is being treated as a terrorist attack.
Update at 8:50 a.m. ET: Red Cross Says At Least 15 Killed, ‘Scores Injured’
Kenya’s Red Cross says “at least 15 killed” in the attack, Reuters reports.
On its Twitter feed, the Kenya Red Cross says that most hospitals in the area are full. An earlier update said, “Scores injured in the #Westgate Shootout.”
Update at 8:28 a.m. ET: Many Hostages Emerge
Moments ago, live coverage on Kenya’s Citizen TV news showed a large group of people, including children, walking quickly from the mall, escorted by security personnel. Many were immediately reunited with friends and family members who had been waiting outside.
Citizen TV reports that the gunmen had taken control of the upper floors and rooftop of the mall.
“We’ve managed to evacuate a number of people,” Kenya’s Interior Ministry tweeted.
But it seems the situation is not yet over. Officials have repeatedly urged Kenyans to donate blood to help the wounded.
Our original post continues:
Reports from the scene describe dozens of people streaming out of the multi-level Westgate Mall, in an affluent area on Nairobi’s north side. Photos showed others receiving treatment for wounds on the sidewalk, and security personnel in green fatigues and helmets taking up positions outside the mall.
Police tell Kenya’s Daily Nation that officers have evacuated parts of the area and are trying to learn more about the attackers.
“We have dispatched air surveillance and we confirm that they are armed criminals. We want to know who they are,” said Internal Security Principal Secretary Mutea Iringo.
Kenya’s Inspector General of Police National Police Service David Kimaiyo has been providing updates on Twitter about the incident. He warned the public and the media to stay away from the area.
“I am directing all media houses to stop showing alarming pictures,” he said.
Article source: http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/09/21/224721637/attackers-use-grenades-and-gunfire-at-upscale-nairobi-mall?ft=1&f=1001