Israelis join Kenyan effort to rescue hostages
Sep 22, 2013
Israeli forces have joined Kenyan troops in the effort to save hostages from al-Qaida-linked Somali terrorists at a Nairobi mall.
NAIROBI - Israeli forces have joined Kenyan troops in the effort to save hostages from al-Qaida-linked Somali terrorists at a Nairobi mall where gunmen killed at least 59 people on Saturday, AFP reported on Sunday.
"The Israelis have just entered and they are rescuing the hostages and the injured," AFP quoted a security source as saying.
An Israeli source in Nairobi said all Israelis who were in the mall at the time of the attack had made it out safely, with the last three rescued overnight.
Kenyan troops taking position on September 21, 2013 inside the Westgate mall in Nairobi. Kenyan troops were locked in a fierce firefight with Somali militants inside an upmarket Nairobi shopping mall on September 22 in a final push to end the siege. PHOTO: AFP
There were conflicting reports from other security sources in Nairobi about the part Israel was playing.
One source said only a "handful" of Israelis, "purely in an advisory role", were on scene at the upscale Westgate shopping center, which has several Israeli-owned outlets and is frequented by expatriates and Kenyans.
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Kenyan troops taking position on September 21, 2013 inside the Westgate mall in Nairobi. Kenyan troops were locked in a fierce firefight with Somali militants inside an upmarket Nairobi shopping mall on September 22 in a final push to end the siege. PHOTO: AFP
Kenyan Interior Minister Joseph Ole Lenku insisted it was a national operation, despite offers of foreign support.
Lenku said Sunday that an unknown number of hostages remained in the mall, held by an estimated 10-15 gunmen.
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