Somali al-Qaeda-affiliated militant group al-Shabaab have claimed responsibility for an attack on a shopping mall in Nairobi on Saturday that killed 30 people, saying on Twitter that it was in retaliation for Kenya’s military intervention in Somalia.
“The Mujahideen entered #Westgate Mall today at around noon and are still inside the mall, fighting the #Kenyan Kuffar (infidels) inside their own turf,” al-Shabaab said on Twitter, according to AFP.
“What Kenyans are witnessing at #Westgate is retributive justice for crimes committed by their military,” the group said.
The militants claim that its gunmen shot 100 people in the mall attack.
The Kenyan Red Cross confirmed that 30 people have been killed and 60 injured.
Kenyan forces entered Somalia two years ago to combat al-Shabaab militants, and maintain a presencein the country as part of an African Union force that supports Somalia’s internationally-backed government.
Earlier on Saturday, Kenya’s presidency said on Twitter that one gunmen had been detained in the attack according to Reuters.
Kenyan police chief David Kimaiyo said that several other attackers had been pinned down after soldiers and police moved into the mall to hunt down the gunmen.