Mohamud Mustaf, a police captain in the area, confirmed to Anadolu Agency on the phone that the bombs had targeted the Dayah Hotel, one of the most frequented hotels in Mogadishu. “The attack began with a suicide car truck followed by a gun battle. Some 20 minutes after the truck bomb, a second car bomb exploded outside the hotel. The injured were rushed to hospitals,” said Mustaf.
“The Dayah Hotel is much frequented by Somali government officials, including federal deputies and federal states members such as southwest state officials,” he added Aadan Isack, an eyewitness, told Anadolu Agency that the attack is ongoing, as al-Shabaab militant gunmen are in the hotel fighting security forces.
“We are still hearing a gun battle after the car bomb attacks which rocked the whole city. There is also huge destruction caused by both car bombs,” he said. The Somali-based al-Qaeda-affiliated al-Shabaab group claimed responsibility for the attack via pro-insurgent radio Andalus, and said suicide bombers belonging to them attacked the hotel, which they said is frequented by government “apostates”.