The Upcoming
  • Culture
    • Art
    • Cinema
      • Movie reviews
      • Film festivals
    • Food & Drinks
      • News & Features
      • Restaurant & bar reviews
      • Interviews & Recipes
    • Literature
    • Music
      • Live music
    • Theatre
    • Shows & On demand
  • Fashion & Lifestyle
    • Accessories
    • Beauty
    • News & Features
    • Shopping & Trends
    • Tips & How-tos
    • Fashion weeks
  • What’s On
    • Art exhibitions
    • Theatre shows
  • Tickets
  • Join us
    • Editorial unit
    • Our writers
    • Join the team
    • Join the mailing list
    • Support us
    • Contact us
  • Interviews
  • Competitions
  • Special events
    • Film festivals
      • Berlin
      • Tribeca
      • Sundance London
      • Cannes
      • Locarno
      • Venice
      • London
      • Toronto
    • Fashion weeks
      • London Fashion Week
      • New York Fashion Week
      • Milan Fashion Week
      • Paris Fashion Week
      • Haute Couture
      • London Fashion Week Men’s
  • Facebook

  • Twitter

  • Instagram

  • YouTube

  • RSS

Current affairsNews

59 confirmed dead in terror attack on Kenyan shopping centre

59 confirmed dead in terror attack on Kenyan shopping centre
22 September 2013
Simon Wyatt
Avatar
Simon Wyatt
22 September 2013

59 people have been killed and 175 injured in an attack on an upmarket Nairobi shopping centre, Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta confirmed in a press conference on Sunday.

President Kenyatta said the rescue operation continues, with over 1,000 people already having been brought out of the Westgate shopping centre.

The militant Somali group al-Shabab has claimed responsibility for the incident, saying the attack is in response to Kenyan military action in southern Somalia, where Kenyan troops have been fighting the militants since 2011.

10 to 15 attackers remain inside the building along with a number of civilians who are either hostages or in hiding.

The UK Foreign Office has confirmed three Britons amongst the dead, adding that this number is likely to rise.

French, Canadian and Chinese citizens have also been killed in the attack along with the prominent Ghanaian poet Kofi Awoonor and President Kenyatta’s nephew and his fiancée.

President Kenyatta has said the militants are now concentrated in one area of the shopping centre.

He has vowed to “punish the masterminds swiftly and painfully”.

There is a heavy military presence in and around the shopping centre with Kenyan officials stating that “major operations” are under way, with police and military personnel preparing an apparent bid to end the current impasse.

The Kenyan president said: “With the professionals on site, we have as good a chance to neutralise the terrorists as we could hope for.”

President Kenyatta expressed his gratitude to all those who have helped with rescue and relief efforts and implored foreign governments not to advise their citizens against visiting Kenya.

People continue to escape from the shopping centre, over 24 hours since the militants entered the building around midday on Saturday.

One escapee, Cecile Ndwiga, who escaped on Sunday morning, described how she had had to remain in hiding in the basement car park overnight because “the shoot-out was all over – left, right”.

Witnesses have described horrific scenes of bodies strewn over tables alongside unfinished fast food.

A number of witnesses have said the militants were targeting non-Muslims.

Elijah Lamau said: “They came and said “If you are Muslim, stand up. We’ve come to rescue you.”

Al-Shabab, which is part of the al-Qaeda network, has frequently threatened to commit terror attacks in Kenya if the country’s government refused to remove its troops from Somalia.

Simon Wyatt

Related Items

More in Current Affairs

Changes to expect during menopause

The editorial unit
Read More

Nek brings Italian pop rock to the Shepherd’s Bush Empire

The editorial unit
Read More

Why Equity Linked Savings Schemes is a preferred tax saving?

The editorial unit
Read More

How the world’s top designers would rebrand political parties

The editorial unit
Read More

Royal baby furore: Proof that the British monarchy is still popular?

Eoin O’Sullivan-Harris
Read More

World Mental Health Day 2018: Raising awareness and combating stigma

The editorial unit
Read More

Seven political personalities you should know about

The editorial unit
Read More

Donald Trump: An enemy of the arts?

The editorial unit
Read More

Trump’s fortune: Where did the money come from?

The editorial unit
Read More
Scroll for more
Tap
  • Popular

  • Latest

  • TOP PICKS

  • We Still Fax at ANTS Theatre Online
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • Live Lab at The Yard Theatre: An interview with associate director Cheryl Gallagher
    Theatre
  • Arlo Parks – Collapsed in Sunbeams
    ★★★★★
    Album review
  • The Capote Tapes
    ★★★★★
    Cinema
  • The Dig
    ★★★★★
    Cinema
  • Crobar: Music When the Lights Go Out
    ★★★★★
    Cinema
  • Green stars, two female chefs at the top and a controversially quick award: This is 2021 UK Michelin Guide during the pandemic
    Food & Drinks
  • Assassins: Exclusive new clip
    Cinema
  • Identifying Features
    ★★★★★
    Uncategorised
  • Schemers
    ★★★★★
    Cinema
  • Green stars, two female chefs at the top and a controversially quick award: This is 2021 UK Michelin Guide during the pandemic
    Food & Drinks
  • Identifying Features
    ★★★★★
    Uncategorised
  • Arlo Parks – Collapsed in Sunbeams
    ★★★★★
    Album review
  • Identifying Features
    ★★★★★
    Cinema
  • We Still Fax at ANTS Theatre Online
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
The Upcoming
Pages
  • Contact us
  • Join mailing list
  • Join us
  • Our London food map
  • Our writers
  • Support us
  • What, when, why

Copyright © 2011-2020 FL Media

European and UN diplomats clash with Israel over aid to the West Bank
Annual UN general assembly begins‏