32 people dead in attack on beach hotel in Somalia; Al-Shabab claims responsibility

Mogadishu, August 3

Police in Somalia said on Saturday that 32 people died and 63 others were wounded in an attack on a beach hotel in the capital, Mogadishu, the previous evening.

Police spokesperson Maj Abdifatah Adan Hassa, told journalists that one soldier was killed in the attack and that the rest were civilians.

Another soldier was also wounded in the attack, Hassan said. Witnesses reported an explosion followed by gunfire.

Al-Qaida’s East Africa affiliate, al-Shabab, said through its 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 (AP) that he saw an attacker wearing an explosive vest moments before the man “blew himself up next to the beach-view hotel.”

Moalim said some of his friends who were with him at the hotel were killed and others were wounded.

Another witness, Abdisalam Adam, told AP that he “saw many people lying on the ground” and had helped take some wounded people to the hospital.

The Lido Beach area has in the past been targeted by militants allied to al-Shabab. The most recent attack last year killed nine people.