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Islamist extremists kill 39 at Kenyan mall

NAIROBI, Kenya Terrified shoppers huddled in back hallways and prayed they would not be found by the Islamic extremist gunmen lobbing grenades and firing assault rifles inside Nairobi top mall Saturday. When the way appeared clear, crying mothers clutching small children and blood splattered men sprinted out of the four story mall.

At least 39 people were killed and more than 150 wounded in the assault, Kenya president announced on national TV, while disclosing that his close family members were among the dead.

Foreigners were among the casualties. France president said two French women were killed. Two Canadians were killed, including a diplomat, said the Candadian prime minister. Four American c Men Nike Free Trainer 3.0 itizens were reported injured in the attack, the State Department said.

Early today, 12 hours after the attack began, gunmen remained holed up in the mall with an unknown number of hostages. President Uhuru Kenyatta called the security operation under way and said a top priority was to safeguard hostages.

As the attack began shortly after noon Saturday, the al Qaida linked gunmen asked the victims they had cornered if they were Muslim: Those who answered yes were free to go, several witnesses said. The non Muslims were not.

Somalia Islamic extremist group al Shabab claimed responsibility and said the attack was retribution for Kenyan forces 2011 push into Somalia. The rebels threatened more attacks.

Al Shabab said on its Twitter feed that Kenyan security officials were trying to open negotiations. will be no negotiations whatsoever, al Shabab tweeted.

As night fell in Kenya capital, two contingents of army special forces troops moved inside the mall. Police and military surrounded the huge shopping complex as helicopters buzzed overhead. An Associated Press reporter said he saw a wounded Kenyan soldier put into an ambulance at nightfall, an indication, perhaps, of a continuing shoot out inside.

Witnesses said at least five gunmen, including at least one woman, first attacked an outdoor cafe at Nairobi Westgate Mall, a new shopping center that includes Nike, Adidas and Bose stores. The mall ownership is Israeli, and security experts have long said the structure made an attractive terrorist target.

The attack began shortly after noon with bursts of gunfire and grenades. Shoppers fled in any direction that might be safe: into back corners of stores, back service hallways and bank vaults. Over the next several hours, pockets of people trickled out of the mall as undercover police moved in. Some of the wounded were taken from the mall in shopping carts.

started by hearing gunshots downstairs and outside. Later we heard them come inside. We took cover. Then we saw two gunmen wearing black turbans. I saw them shoot, said Patrick Kuria, an employee at Artcaffe, the restaurant with shady outdoor seating.

Al Shabab, on its Twitter feed, said it has warned Kenya government many times that failure to remove its forces from Somalia have severe consequences. The group claimed that its gunmen had killed 100 people, but its assertions are often exaggerated.

attack at WestgateMall is just a very tiny fraction of what Muslims in Somalia experience at the hands of Kenyan invaders, al Shabab said. Another tweet said: long we have waged war against the Kenyans in our land, now it time to shift the battleground and take the war to their land Westgate. Twitter account was suspended shortly after its claim of responsibility and threats against Kenya. Twitter terms of service forbid making threats.

Al Shabab had threatened in late 2011 to unleash a large scale attack in Nairobi. Kenya has seen a regular spate of grenade attacks since then but never such a large terrorist assault. State Department condemned senseless act of violence that has resulted in death and injury for many innocent men, women, and children. Embassy in Kenya have been affected by the attack. No other information was provided.

perpetrators of this heinous act must be brought to justice, and we have offered our full support to the Kenyan government to do so, said Caitlin Hayden, a spokeswoman for the White House National Security Council.

The gunmen told hostages that non Muslims would b nike e targeted, said Elijah Kamau, who was at the mall at the time of the midday attack. gunmen told Muslims to stand up and leave. They were safe, and non Muslims would be targeted, he said.

Jay Patel, who sought cover on an upper floor in the mall when shooting began, said that when he looked out of a window onto the upper parking deck of the mall he saw the gunmen with a group of people. Patel said that as the attackers were talking, some of the people stood up and left and the others were shot.

Somalian President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said his nation knows too well the human costs of violence like this as he extended prayers to those in Kenya.