Somali forces end hotel siege, 9 killed

GOOBJOOG NEWS|MOGADISHU: Security forces in Mogadishu ended the Hotel Afrik siege in the wee hours of Monday morning and confirmed the death of five civilians among them a decorated war hero General Mohamed Galaal.

The Ministry of Information said in a statement the Special Forces brought down all the three of the militants while a third one had earlier killed himself after detonating a bomb at the entrance of the hotel. The attack started at about 5 pm local time and lasted into the night.

The militants are reported to have made way into the rooms of the three-storey hotel apartment and held the security forces at bay by firing from windows of the hotel. Gunshots could be heard into the night as smoke billowed from the top of the building for a better part of the night.

General Galaal is considered the architect of the 1977 Ogaden war which saw President Siad Barre send his troops to fight in the Ogaden region of Ethiopia. The war, however, ended tragicalley for the Somali forces after Russia, which had been backing Somalia switched sides and lent support to Ethiopia.

President Mohamed Farmaajo led a pack of leaders including former presidents Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and Sheikh Sharif Ahmed in condoling with General Galaal and other victims of the attack.

Hours before the attack, a warning issued to staff working for international agencies indicated a possible attack in the city within the 72 hours targeting major hotels in the city. “Colleagues are advised to stay clear of key locations where members of Parliament or Somali Government frequent outside of working hours. Major hotels, restaurants and cafes along the Maka al Mukarama road close to the Federal Parliament building are deemed to be high-value targets by AS,” the intelligence brief read in part.