Three Kenyans have reportedly been killed in an attack by Al-Shabaab on the popular Asasey Hotel in southern Somalia.
According to reports, the hours-long incident began on Friday evening and ended at 7 a.m. on Saturday, before troops shot dead all attackers inside the hotel compound.
More than 50 people were reportedly injured in the attack even as the death toll rose to 26 people with victims including 3 Tanzanians, 2 Americans, one Canadian and one Briton.
At least 4 Al-Shabaab assailants attacked the hotel, beginning with a suicide car bomb at the entrance gate and followed by an assault by gunmen who stormed the hotel, which is frequented by politicians, patrons, and lawmakers.
The attack in Kismayo, about 485 kilometers south of Mogadishu, came amid preparation for regional elections.
Somalia’s Islamic extremist rebels, Al-Shabaab, which is allied to Al-Qaida, claimed responsibility for the attack.
Al-Shabaab was driven from the capital, Mogadishu, in 2011 and has since been eliminated from most of its other strongholds.
In 2012, it was pushed out of Kismayo, whose port had been a major source of revenue for the group.
Outside of Kismayo, Al-Shabab still controls parts of Jubaland, a region in southern Somalia.
The armed group remains a major security threat with its fighters frequently carrying out bombings in Somalia and neighbouring Kenya, whose troops form part of the African Union-mandated peacekeeping force that helps defend the Somali government.
