Three Britons dead in Kenya mall massacre: Up to 15 hostages still trapped at Kenyan shopping centre where Muslim terrorists slaughtered 59 in terrifying siege they

Three Britons have been confirmed dead after armed terrorists stormed a Nairobi shopping centre and the number is likely to rise, the Foreign Office said.
The terrorists, using guns and grenades, slaughtered 59 people in the attack, according to Kenyan Interior Minister Joe Lenku.

A large Kenyan security force has laid siege to the mall and taken control of its security cameras, according to Mr Lenku.
There are 10 to 15 hostages still trapped inside and it's thought that Israeli soldiers are assisting with the rescue mission. 'The Israelis have entered and they are rescuing the hostages and the injured,' a source told AFP.
Two wounded Kenyan security forces officers were carried out of the mall this morning after a barrage of gunfire was heard.
Prime Minister David Cameron said: 'It is an absolutely sickening and despicable attack of appalling brutality.'
As the massacre unfolded witnesses described terrifying scenes in which men, women and children of all ages and nationalities were brutally cut down.
The mall, a popular haunt for rich Kenyans and expats, was dotted with bodies lying in pools of blood. Some victims were shot dead as they sat in their cars, while others have been left with horrific injuries.
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Rescue mission: An image from AFP TV shows military forces taking position inside the shopping mall

Armed response: Kenyan troops with machine guns take up position in the mall

Tense: Soldiers from the Kenya Defense Forces walk out of the mall, following the sound of explosions and gunfire

Lock-down: Kenya security personnel walk to their positions outside the shopping mall as the siege continues

Hunting down the terrorists: Soldiers from the Kenya Defence Forces arrive at the Westgate Shopping Centre in the capital Nairobi

Led to safety: An image grab taken from AFP TV shows civilians being evacuated from the mall

Siege: People look at the Westgate shopping mall in the distance where hostages are being held for the second day

Escape: This family, who had been trapped inside the shopping centre, support each other as they escape from the scene

Horror: Shoppers hurry down an escalator with their hands in the air as they make their way out of the shopping centre to safety

Army: Soldiers were drafted in to help police tackle the gunmen, who are now known to be terrorists from the Somali al-Shabaab organisation, which has links to al-Qaeda

Shootout: Soldiers and armed police fire at the suspected terrorists as they try to wrest back control of the shopping centre

Desperation: A crowd of people hold their arms out to catch a Kenyan woman as she jumps out from the air vent where she had been hiding from the gunmen

Emergency: A Red Cross assistant helps a child outside who was among those caught in the shooting

Killings: At least 59 people are believed to be dead, although police have not confirmed a death toll

Desperation: An injured woman, whose face and clothes are drenched in blood, lies on the ground outside the shopping mall screaming for help

Escape: Women carrying children run for safety after al Shabaab terrorists stormed Westgate shopping center in Nairobi, Kenya armed with guns and grenades

Spree: Shots are still being heard in the mall as police and terrorists engage in a stand-off

Hands up: Hostages of all nationalities head for the exit with their arms raised to show they are not carrying any weapons

Location: The attack took place in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya

Tragic: Annemarie Desloges, a Canadian diplomat, was killed in the atrocity

Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta has pledged to hunt down and punish the terrorists behind the brutal attack in upmarket Nairobi, in which a further 150 people were injured.
In a national televised address he said he had ‘personally lost family members in the Westgate attack’.
Somali-based militant group al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for the outrage at the mall in the affluent Westlands district of the capital.

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A foreign office spokesperson said that three British nationals are confirmed dead and that the next of kin of those nationals have been informed.
The Government’s crisis committee (COBR), chaired by Foreign Secretary William Hague, met earlier today to discuss the incident.
The Labour Party conference in Brighton paused for a minute's silence as news of the deaths filtered through, with Ed Miliband among those reflecting on the tragedy.
Two Canadians, including diplomat Annemarie Desloges, and two French women have been confirmed as being among the dead, along with renowned Ghanaian poet and statesman Kofi Awoonor.
The US State Department also said four American citizens were reported injured.
In his speech last night, Mr Kenyatta said security forces were in the process of ‘neutralising the attackers and securing the mall’ but he said it was a ‘delicate’ operation.
He urged Kenyans to ‘remain calm and vigilant’ and asked them to donate blood to help treat the injured.
And he vowed: ‘We shall hunt down the perpetrators wherever they run to. We shall get to them and we shall punish them for this heinous crime.’
Jonathan Maungo, a private security guard, told Reuters: 'They entered through blood, that's how they'll leave.'
It's understood that security officials are probing the possible involvement of the fugitive ‘white widow’ of 7/7 London bomber Germaine Lindsay, Samantha Lewthwaite - a key Al Shabaab bomb-maker and fundraiser.
The BBC's Anne Soy said: 'This is an upmarket shopping mall - it's one of the more exclusive ones in Nairobi. It often attracts foreigners and wealthy Kenyans, many of them of Indian descent. This is a situation which is cutting across race, tribes and nationalities.'
Terrified shoppers told of how they huddled in back hallways and prayed they would not be found by the militants.
When the way appeared clear, crying mothers clutching small children and blood-splattered men sprinted out of the four-storey mall.
At one burger restaurant, a man and woman lay in a final embrace after they had been killed, before their bodies were removed. Pop music was left playing.
Witness Elijah Kamau said the gunmen told Muslims to stand up and leave and that non-Muslims would be targeted, as they began their attack.
The gunmen threw grenades and then opened fire, sending shoppers and staff fleeing for their lives.
Eyewitness Fred Ngoga Gateretse, an official with the African Union, told The New York Times: 'Believe me, these guys were good shooters. You could tell they were trained.'
Charles Karani, 41, an IT engineer, said: ‘I hid under a car with my daughters, and I saw the men line up maybe 40 people and ask them who was Muslim, and if they were to prove it by saying the name of the Prophet’s mother. Those who got it wrong were shot.
‘There was blood everywhere. Two ladies under the car with me had gunshot wounds on their legs. 
‘Another Indian gentlemen was hit in the face by a bullet but he seemed not to be gravely hurt. Other people for sure are dead. I saw four people lying, not moving.

Helping the injured: Bags of blood are seen on a table after Kenyans come in large numbers to donate blood for the victims of the attack

Caring: Kenyans lie on stretchers as they donate blood

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Scramble: People crawl on their stomachs to safety as security forces keep a lookout at the Nairobi mall on Saturday

Fleeing: A child runs to safety across the shopping mall

Wounded: A Kenyan policeman sits clutching his stomach alongside his rifle while a colleague exchanges fire with the terrorists

Scared: Clearly distressed, this family join hands as they make their way out of the building. Bullet wounds can be seen in the glass behind them

Cat and mouse: A security officer points out the location of where some of the terrorists may be hiding to his colleagues, all three of whom have their pistols at the ready

Protection: A mother and her children lie on the floor as they attempt to hide while the gunmen armed with automatic weapons go on the rampage

Terrified: A young girl in tears is led away form the terror by a police officer

Terror: Armed police guide a woman carrying a child to safety at Westgate Shopping Centre

'A grenade was thrown and it rolled near us, my daughter said, “Papa, there’s a  grenade” – but thank God it didn’t go off and I kicked it away.’ The gunmen wore white bandanas, Mr Karani said, and appeared to work in teams, each taking control of a different floor of the five-storey building. He also said officials had confirmed to him that the attacker they arrested was a Kenyan Muslim convert. Nahashon Mwangi was at work when he received a desperate telephone call from his son, pleading with him to rescue him from imminent death. 'Dad, I have been shot in the neck and hand. I am bleeding. Come and help me please,' his 21-year-old son said. 'It took me about an hour to access the area,' Mwangi said. 'I was crying and pleading with the police to save my son. I remember shouting like a kid, crying and crying but they wouldn't let me through.' Relief finally came five hours later, when his injured son was among a group of people located and evacuated by security forces who were sweeping the mall shop by shop. He was rushed to Nairobi's Aga Khan University Hospital and was undergoing emergency surgery. 'I pray that he will be OK,' the shocked father said. 'Why would these people do this to us?' Another victim, mall worker Zipporah Wanjiru, emerged from the ordeal alive but in a state of total shock. 'They were speaking some language I could not understand,' she said of the attackers. 'I could not understand anything - but the sound of their voices was scary.' Many of the injured have been taken to Kenyatta National Hospital, at which a fire broke out this morning, according to reports. The blaze is said to have erupted in the baby unit, with those being cared for evacuated to safety. To add to the chaos so many people gathered to watch the shocking drama develop that police had to use tear gas to disperse them, according to a Washington Post writer. Speaking from Nairobi, Daniel Howden, reporter for The Independent, told The BBC that a ‘massive operation’ was still ongoing inside the mall this morning where the gang continued to hold an unknown number of people hostage.

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