M A I N   N E W S

Kenya mall siege toll mounts to 68
* Israeli spl forces arrive
* 2 Indians among dead
* Somali Islamists claim attack

Nairobi/Abuja, September 22
Two Indians were among 68 persons killed by heavily armed Somali Islamist militants who stormed a packed mall in Nairobi. They engaged in fierce fighting with Kenyan soldiers backed by Israeli special forces who were trying to rescue about 30 hostages and end the bloody siege that entered the second day today.

At least 68 persons are now confirmed to have been killed in an ongoing Nairobi shopping mall siege, Kenya Red Cross said today, after nine more bodies were recovered.

Four Indians, including two women and a girl, were among nearly 200 persons injured in the brazen attack launched by Al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab group yesterday on the part Israeli-owned Westgate centre.

There were conflicting reports about the number of militants inside the four-storey mall, with Kenyan Interior Minister Joseph Ole Lenkua saying there were 10 to 15 heavily armed men while some witnesses said they had seen only four men in black, their heads covered in scarves.

The Kenyan Government and Western diplomatic sources said the militants were holding about 30 hostages. Helicopters were seen circling overhead and there was a strong military presence in and around the mall.

Israeli special forces were today at the scene and working with their Kenyan counterparts in the hostage crisis, Kenyan Government sources were quoted as saying.

As the gunfire continued, troops evacuated over 1,000 persons from the centre after the masked militants launched the deadliest assault since Al-Qaida bombed the US Embassy in Nairobi in 1998, killing over 200 persons.

Two Indians, including an eight-year-old boy, were killed and four other community members injured in the attack, an External Affairs Ministry spokesperson said in New Delhi.

Two Indians, including an eight-year-old boy, were killed and four other community members injured in the attack, an External Affairs Ministry spokesperson said in New Delhi. The dead Indians were identified as 40-year-old Sridhar Natarajan, employee of a pharmaceutical firm, and Paramshu Jain, son of a manager of the local Bank of Baroda branch.

The injured Indians are Natarajan's wife Manjula Sridhar, Paramshu Jain's mother Mukta Jain, 12-year-old Poorvi Jain and Natarajan Ramachandran, an employee of Flamingo Duty Free.

PM Manmohan Singh today condemned the attack in a letter to Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta and said the incident is "a stark reminder that the persisting menace of terrorism remains a formidable challenge that calls for a concerted and sustained response from the global community".

"I was deeply shocked and saddened by the brutal terror attack yesterday on the Westgate Mall in Nairobi...India condemns in the strongest terms this heinous and senseless assault, which has snuffed out so many innocent lives, including nationals of both our countries," Singh said.

Prime Minister Singh directed the External Affairs Ministry to extend all help to Indian nationals who were victims of the attack, and offered assistance to Kenyan authorities to deal with the situation.

In a televised address to the nation, Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta said insurgents are terrorist cowards and that he had "personally lost very close family members in the Westgate attack". He said a nephew and his fiancee were among the killed in the ongoing siege.

Al Shabab group claimed responsibility for the attack on its Twitter account. — PTI

Hostage crisis continues

• Over 1,000 persons evacuated, nearly 200 injured; 10-15 attackers still holed up in the mall
• Among the dead was renowned Ghanaian poet and statesmen Kofi Awoonor
• Al-Qaida linked Al Shabaab claimed responsibility for attack; has been demanding withdrawal of Kenyan troops from Somalia
• The assault is the biggest single attack in Kenya since Qaida’s East Africa cell bombed the US Embassy in Nairobi in 1998 killing over 200 persons

PM condemns attack

I was deeply shocked and saddened by the brutal terror attack yesterday on the Westgate Mall in Nairobi… India condemns in the strongest terms this heinous and senseless assault, which has snuffed out so many innocent lives, including nationals of both our countries. — Manmohan Singh, PM