Kenyan Shopping mall target of Islamic Terrorism was Jewish owned, 2 Canadians confirmed dead.(GlobalNews).
Two Canadians have been killed in an attack on an upscale mall in Kenya’s capital Saturday, Prime Minister Stephen Harper confirmed in a statement. One of the dead has been identified as 29-year-old Annemarie Desloges, a Canadian diplomat. Her husband was with her at the time of the attack.
“The hearts and prayers of all Canadians go out to the families and friends of all those affected by this senseless tragedy, and we extend our deepest condolences to those suffering the loss of Annemarie Desloges, one of our diplomats who has died in the attack,” Harper said in a statement.
The statement also said Desloges was a “distinguished public servant” working as a liason officer with the Canadian Border Services Agency in Kenya.
Desloges came to Kenya two years ago from an embassy in New Delhi. She had worked for the Canadian government since 2008. Kenya’s president says 39 people died and more than 150 were wounded when armed gunmen stormed the upscale mall. An al Qaeda-linked militant group from Somali, al-Shabab, has claimed responsibility for the attack. Harper said the “cowardly, hateful act” should not go unpunished.
“Canadian staff at our mission are offering Kenyan authorities every possible assistance to bring the perpetrators of this heinous attack to justice.”
France’s president said that two French women were killed, and there were reports of American citizens injured, but the U.S. State Department said it had no further details.
Early Sunday morning, 12 hours after the attack began, gunmen remained holed up inside the mall with an unknown number of hostages. President Uhuru Kenyatta called the security operation under way “delicate” and said a top priority was to safeguard hostages.
As the attack unfolded shortly after noon Saturday, the al-Qaida-linked gunmen asked the victims they had cornered if they were Muslim: If the answer was yes, several witnesses said, those people were free to go. The non-Muslims were not.
Somalia’s 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. “There will be no negotiations whatsoever,” al-Shabab tweeted.
Witnesses said at least five gunmen – including at least one woman – first attacked an outdoor cafe at Nairobi’s Westgate Mall, a shiny, new shopping centre that hosts Nike, Adidas and Bose stores.
AP reported that the cafe attacked is called Artcaffe; Kenyan websites said the cafe is owned by local Israelis.
Gilad Millo, a Nairobi-based Israeli, said two Israeli men and a woman who were in the mall when the attack began were unharmed and safe.
Yariv Kedar, one of the three Israelis who was in the Artcaffe at the time, told Channel 2 he “heard the gunfire getting closer” and bullets whizzed “over our heads” before he managed to escape.
“We 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.
The mall’s ownership is Israeli, and security experts have long said the structure made an attractive terrorist target.Hmmm........AlShabab.......IHH.......Mavi Marmara!Read and see the full story here.More here.Related: Turkish Aid Officials (IHH) Meet with Al-Shabaab
No comments:
Post a Comment