Water Car Engineer
ELITE MEMBER
- Joined
- Sep 25, 2010
- Messages
- 13,313
- Reaction score
- 8
- Country
- Location
At least 48 people have died after al-Qaeda-linked militants attacked hotels and a police station in a Kenyan coastal town, officials say.
Witnesses in Mpeketoni said gun battles lasted several hours, while several buildings were set on fire.
The town is on the mainland near Lamu island, a well-known tourist resort.
Somalia's al-Shabab group said the attack was carried out to avenge the presence of Kenyan troops in Somalia and the killing of Muslims.
Kenya sent troops to Somalia in 2011 to help the weak UN-backed government defeat the militants.
The BBC's Anne Soy in Mpeketoni says she was told the gunmen shot dead anyone who was unable to recite verses from the Koran.
This is the most deadly attack in Kenya since last September, when at least 67 people were killed during a siege by al-Shabab fighters at Nairobi's Westgate shopping centre.
BBC News - Kenya attack: Mpeketoni near Lamu hit by al-Shabab raid
Witnesses in Mpeketoni said gun battles lasted several hours, while several buildings were set on fire.
The town is on the mainland near Lamu island, a well-known tourist resort.
Somalia's al-Shabab group said the attack was carried out to avenge the presence of Kenyan troops in Somalia and the killing of Muslims.
Kenya sent troops to Somalia in 2011 to help the weak UN-backed government defeat the militants.
The BBC's Anne Soy in Mpeketoni says she was told the gunmen shot dead anyone who was unable to recite verses from the Koran.
This is the most deadly attack in Kenya since last September, when at least 67 people were killed during a siege by al-Shabab fighters at Nairobi's Westgate shopping centre.
BBC News - Kenya attack: Mpeketoni near Lamu hit by al-Shabab raid
