Somali hotel under fire by hardliners, 31 killed

Hardline al Shabaab Islamists which pledge alliance to al Qaeda, control most of Mogadishu, and have been waging an insurgency for three years against the country’s fragile government. Nobody claimed responsibility yet of the attack on the Muna hotel.

Amongst the victims shot dead, its been reported that six of them were members of parliament and five were members of government security forces.

The attack highlighted the failure of the Somali government as well as over 6,300 peace keepers which have tried to bring order to Somalia. The country proves to be a constant source of instability for east Africa, after almost two decades of anarchy.

The hardline Islamists killed 70 people last month after a double suicide bomb attack on packed bars in Uganda’s capital of Kampala.

Information minister Abdirahman Osman said "The blood of the dead is leaking out of the hotel."

Another anonymous spokesperson said "Some of the MPs had guns in their rooms and defended themselves before security forces arrived."

One gunman has reportedly been captured, while another two blew themselves up.

Peacekeepers have so far done little more than guard the airport, port and President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed.

The African Union yesterday announced the arrival of hundreds of new peacekeeping troops, predominantly from Uganda, to help the government in its clash against Shabaab.

Over 21,000 Somalis have been killed since the insurgency started, and another 1.5 million uprooted from their homes and half a million seeking shelter in other countries in the region.