Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta says security forces have finally defeated a small group of terrorists after four days in fighting at a Nairobi mall.
Three floors of the mall collapsed and several bodies were trapped in the rubble, said Kenyatta. His office later said a terrorist’s body was among those in the debris.
Five other attackers were killed by gunfire, he said.
“We have ashamed and defeated our attackers,” Kenyatta said in the televised address to the nation.
He said the attack, which started on September 21, had left 72 dead, including 61 dead civilians and six of his security forces, and hundreds of others injured. He said five terrorists were killed and another 11 suspects have been taken into custody.
“These cowards and their associates will meet justice wherever they are,” he said.
The president says three floors of the Westgate mall collapsed and that there are “several bodies still trapped in the rubble including the terrorists.”
He declared three days of national mourning, and thanked the people on Kenya.
More than 60 million Kenyan shillings have been raised for the victims of the attack, said Kenyatta.
Still, police officers have been instructed to stay at the mall, and it will be a major operation to recover all the bodies inside. Also, people who were forced to leave their vehicles at the mall should go to the Parklands Police Station because the mall is still a crime scene, according to blogger Robert Alai.
The Ministry of Interior and Coordination of National Government in the president’s office said that it will keep the public “thoroughly informed” of developments in the situation, per instructions from the president.
Kenyan forces had for more than two days said they were in the “final phase” of the operation, only to be battled back by the militants inside the building.
Explosions rang from the upscale Westgate mall in Nairobi throughout Tuesday, and the chatter of gunfire from inside the building could also be heard. Fresh smoke rose from the building in the afternoon.
The Kenyan Red Cross had previously said 62 people had been killed, and it seemed certain that the number of confirmed deaths would rise as security forces comb the building.
Nairobi’s city morgue had already braced for the arrival of a large number of bodies of people killed, an official said.
Kenyan Red Cross spokesman Abbas Gullet said it was still not known how many more may be dead inside the building.
“It is certainly known that there are more casualties,” he said.
Story developing; check back for updates.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Correction: The current death toll is 72, while the current combined death and injury toll is 240.
