Al-Shabab: Christian hostages held in Kenya university
At least 15 killed and 65 wounded as al-Shabab gunmen storm university complex in northeastern town of Garissa.
STORY HIGHLIGHTSAl-Shabab gunmen storm university complex at dawn
Unknown number of students taken hostage
Al-Shabab says Muslims let go, Christians held
Two guards confirmed dead in shooting with gunmen
Kenyan military and police deployed to the sceneAl-Shabab gunmen have attacked a college campus in the town of Garissa in northeast Kenya, shooting indiscriminately in dormitories and killing at least 15 people and wounding 65 others, police said.
Witnesses said explosions and heavy gunfire rocked Garissa University College early on Thursday as the gunmen stormed the complex. Ambulances were seen driving injured students to local hospitals.
The gunmen were holding an "unknown number of student hostages," the Kenya Red Cross said in a statement. Some "50 students have been safely freed", the organisation said.
Terrified students streamed out of buildings, some young men shirtless, as arriving police officers hunkered down, taking cover, witnesses said.
Kenyan security forces have cordoned off the area, and have entered the compound laying siege to the block where the gunmen are holding their captives. Witnesses reported hearing sporadic exchanges of fire between police and the fighters.
At least two police had been wounded in the clashes, though the extent of their injuries in not known.
A worried mother of a student who is holed up in one of the dormitories told Al Jazeera that her son described the situation inside the facility as warzone with gunfire and explosion ranting the air.
“I am worried that my son will get hurt, he told me was hiding and sounded terrified,” she said.
'Christians held hostage'
Somalia's al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab group said their gunmen were holding Christian hostages inside the complex in revenge for Nairobi's troops fighting in Somalia.
The gunmen divided students at the university between Muslims and non-Muslims, letting the Muslim students go, the group's spokesman Sheikh Ali Mohamud Rage told AFP news agency by telephone.
"Kenya is at war with Somalia ... our people are still there, they are fighting and their mission is to kill those who are against al-Shabab," Rage said.
"When our men arrived, they released some people, the Muslims, and it is them that alerted the government. We are holding the others hostage," he said, adding those seized were Christians, but not saying how many there were.
He did not give details on the number of casualties but said "there are very many".
Speaking from Garissa, cabinet secretary Joseph Nkaissery said one of the attackers was arrested as he tried to flee the scene.
'Fierce shootout'
The gunmen opened fire at the university, triggering a "fierce shootout" with police guarding student dorms, Kenya's National Police Service said in a written statement.
"The attackers shot the guards at the entrance of the university. Police officers responded but the attackers managed to get into the [university] hostel," she said.
"We can confirm that two watchmen were killed; we cannot confirm student casualties," Mboroki added.
Local journalists, however, reported that at least 10 bodies were brought to a hospital in Garissa.
The attack on the university facility began at dawn, Alinoor Moulid, a freelance journalist based in Garissa, told Al Jazeera.
"According to some of the students who escaped, there are around five gunmen and they entered the university dormitory while students were sleeping," Moulid said.
"It is hard to tell [about casualties] because the area is now cordoned off, and it is heavily guarded," he added. "At the moment, I can hear sirens, and at some point I could hear an exchange of gunfire."
Al Jazeera's Malcolm Webb, who is at the scene in Garissa, reported seeing two buses filled with recently freed hostages heading away from the campus.
A student Webb spoke to while inside the compound said that there appeared to be about 200 to 300 hostages.
"We heard that there are only four or five hostage takers but because they have a good vantage position on an upper floor, they have been able to hold off security forces," he said.
Kenya had advised universities to take increased security measures in light of al-Shabab threats, but two armed guards posted at the institute were shot dead very early on in the attack, Webb added.
Al-Shabab has carried out several attacks in Garissa and across Kenya in the past, including the 2013 attack on an upscale shopping mall in the capital Nairobi.
The group has vowed to punish Kenya for sending troops into Somalia alongside African Union peacekeepers to fight the group.
Conventional response
Kenya's President Uhuru Kenyatta sent his condolences in a televised statement and said full details of the casualties would be released shortly.
" We continue to pray for the quick recovery of the injured, and the safe rescue of those held hostage," he said.
Speaking to Al Jazeera, Farah Maalim, a former Kenyan deputy parliamentary speaker, described the attack on the university as "scary".
"The damage can be colossal, but no one seems to know at this point," Maalim said.
"You cannot fight these isolated attacks with conventional military tactics, which still seems to be the only response" .
"There is a possible intelligence lapse here, and that is no excuse [because] we have state of the art of intelligence gathering and plans can be intercepted."
Maalim said al-Shabab was losing the battle it has been waging in Somalia and Kenya.
"They are on the death bed. They need to be in the limelight; that is why they are going for these soft targets," he said.
Gunmen attacked the university early on Thursday, shooting indiscriminately in campus hostels [Associated Press]
Kenyan troops and policemen cordoned off the university complex [Alinoor Moulid Bosh/Al Jazeera]
Source: Al Jazeera And Agencies
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