Suspected militants have attacked a luxury hotel complex in Nairobi, killing at least one person.
Gunfire and blasts were heard at the compound in the Westlands district of the Kenyan capital, which houses the DusitD2 hotel as well as offices.
The Somalia-based militant group al-Shabab said it was behind the attack but gave no details.
People – some with bullet wounds and covered in blood – were escorted out of the building by heavily armed police.
What is the latest?
The attack began at about 15:00 local time (12:00 GMT). Kenyan media say the gunmen arrived at the complex by car, shot their way past guards, threw bombs at vehicles in the car park and entered the building.
A woman working in a neighbouring building told Reuters news agency: “I just started hearing gunshots, and then started seeing people running away raising their hands up and some were entering the bank to hide for their lives.”
Police then rushed to the scene. One officer told the BBC’s Ferdinand Omondi at the scene: “Things are not good. People are dying.”
Kenyan police chief Joseph Boinnet told reporters: “Armed criminals are holding up in the hotel and specialist forces are currently flushing them out.”
Later a hospital spokesman said at least one person had been killed and at least five others wounded.
The five-star DusitD2 hotel has 101 rooms. Located in the Westlands suburb, minutes from the capital’s business district, it has its own spa and several restaurants.
Kenya has seen a number of terror attacks in recent years – most notably in areas close to the Somali border and in the country’s capital.
Who are al-Shabab?
They are a militant Islamist group that opposes the Somali government but has also carried out attacks throughout East Africa.
Kenya is part of a regional peacekeeping operation that supports the Somali government in its battle against al-Shabab.
In September 2013, al-Shabab gunmen entered the Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi and targeted shoppers.
During an 80-hour siege at the upscale centre, 67 people were killed.
Two years later, the group carried out its deadliest ever assault in Kenya, shooting dead almost 150 people at Garissa University.
Source: BBC
