Eight Held Over Nairobi Mall Attack, Al Shabaab Issues New Threat
https://nigeriaafrica1.blogspot.com/2013/09/eight-held-over-nairobi-mall-attack-al.html
Kenyan authorities are holding eight people in connection with an attack by Islamist militants on a Nairobi shopping mall and have released three others after the assault that killed 67 civilians and soldiers, the interior minister said on Friday.
Somali Islamist group al Shabaab said Saturday's attack, which ended after a four-day siege by soldiers and police, was "just the premiere of Act 1" and suggested it would be followed by other actions by its "warriors".
As the police investigation advanced, a leading Muslim cleric urged security forces to avoid harassing Muslims in their pursuit of those responsible.
Investigators trying to determine the identity of the attackers were making "good progress" in their search through the rubble of the mall where three floors collapsed after a series of blasts and a huge blaze, Interior Minister Joseph Ole Lenku said. Five of the attackers were killed, he said, but survivors of attack have said some may have escaped.
"Police are holding eight suspects as they seek to unmask the face behind the terror attack. Three others were interrogated and released," Ole Lenku told a news briefing.
Kenyan officials have said they are investigating a theory that the Islamists may have hired a shop in the mall before the assault to store weaponry, including a heavy machine gun.
Suspects were being held under anti-terrorism laws meaning they could be held "for longer periods before being arraigned in court", Ole Lenku said, although he did not give details.
Al Shabaab, which is linked to al Qaeda, said it launched the attack to demand Kenya withdraw its troops from Somalia, where Kenyan forces deployed in 2011 to strike at the group which Nairobi blamed for attacks and kidnappings in Kenya's eastern area and coastline.
As the police investigation advanced, a leading Muslim cleric urged security forces to avoid harassing Muslims in their pursuit of those responsible.
Investigators trying to determine the identity of the attackers were making "good progress" in their search through the rubble of the mall where three floors collapsed after a series of blasts and a huge blaze, Interior Minister Joseph Ole Lenku said. Five of the attackers were killed, he said, but survivors of attack have said some may have escaped.
"Police are holding eight suspects as they seek to unmask the face behind the terror attack. Three others were interrogated and released," Ole Lenku told a news briefing.
Kenyan officials have said they are investigating a theory that the Islamists may have hired a shop in the mall before the assault to store weaponry, including a heavy machine gun.
Suspects were being held under anti-terrorism laws meaning they could be held "for longer periods before being arraigned in court", Ole Lenku said, although he did not give details.
Al Shabaab, which is linked to al Qaeda, said it launched the attack to demand Kenya withdraw its troops from Somalia, where Kenyan forces deployed in 2011 to strike at the group which Nairobi blamed for attacks and kidnappings in Kenya's eastern area and coastline.
