Twenty-one people were killed in latest Al-Shabaab attack
Al-Shabaab, a Somalia-based Islamic jihadist group, besieged a hotel in Mogadishu on Friday, August 19. Following 30 hours of violence, including gunfights with police and explosions, the al-Qaeda-affiliated group finally retreated.
As of Sunday, August 21, the official death toll had climbed to 21. According to the Somali Ministry of Health, more than 117 people were wounded.
This attack is the biggest in Mogadishu since the June inauguration of Somalia’s new president, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud. It is a discouraging setback to the efforts to stop the spread of Islamic jihadism in the region.
Al-Shabaab poses a considerable threat to Christians in both Somalia and surrounding countries, especially Kenya. Christian communities in Kenya, which shares a border with Somalia, are frequently targeted when Al-Shabaab militants make excursions into Kenyan territory.
Source: Persecution.org
