Kenya's interior cabinet secretary Joseph Lenku said at least 68 people were killed and at least 175 injured, with 30 civilians still remain trapped inside the upscale Westgate Mall in Nairobi, more than 24 hours after Somali al-Shabaab terrorists threw grenades and opened fire at shoppers on Saturday, BBC News reported. Al-Shabaab is the Somali-based cell of al-Qaeda.
The siege continued through Sunday as journalists outside the security cordon reported gunfire and a large explosion, BBC News also reported. Civilians inside the mall are either still trapped as hostages or remain hiding from terrorists.
Some witnesses said terrorists originally told Muslims to leave and said non-Muslims would be targeted.
"They came and said: 'If you are Muslim, stand up. We've come to rescue you'," said Elijah Lamau.
"The criminals are now located in one place within the building. With the professionals on site, we have as good a chance to neutralize the terrorists as we could hope for," President Uhuru Kenyatta said.
Kenyatta's nephew and his fiancee were among the dead. Three Britons have been confirmed dead, according to the UK Foreign Office.
"French, Chinese, Ghanaian, Dutch, South African, Indian and Canadian nationals are also among the foreigners confirmed killed, along with a dual Australian-British national," BBC News reported.
There are about 4,000 Kenyan troops in the South of Somalia, and al-Shabaab said that it carried out the attack in response to its neighboring country's military options.
The attack began at around noon local time on Saturday, as terrorists entered the main entrance throwing grenaes and were firing automatic weapons.
Children were among the dead, as a children's day was being held at the time.
Dead bodies lay sprawled in stores and at the food on each floor throughout the mall most frequented by Westerners. At first the shootout was believed to be a robbery. Police took about half an hour to arrive at the scene.
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