MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — An explosion and gunfire rocked a beachfront hotel in Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia, prompting security forces to rush to the scene, authorities and witnesses said Friday night.
The state-run Somali National News Agency reported that security forces had “neutralized” the attackers. There was no immediate report of deaths or injuries.
Al-Shabaab, the East African branch of al-Qaeda, reported on the radio that its fighters carried out the attack.
Lido Beach, a popular area in Mogadishu, is bustling on Friday nights as Somalis enjoy their weekend.
A witness, Mohamud Moalim, told The Associated Press in a telephone interview that he saw an attacker wearing an explosive vest just before the man “blew himself up next to the hotel overlooking the beach.”
Moalim said some of his friends who were with him at the hotel were killed and others were injured.
Another witness, Abdisalam Adam, told AP he saw “many people lying on the ground” and that he helped take some of the injured to hospital.
The Lido Beach area has been targeted in the past by militants affiliated with al-Shabaab. The most recent attack last year resulted in nine people are killed.
