Armed militants attack hotel in Somalia capital

Armed militants of a Somalia-based terror group Al-Shabab stormed into a hotel in Mogadishu on Tuesday evening (local time).

The gunmen forced their way inside the SYL Hotel located near the presidential palace and opened fire on the patrons who included some lawmakers, Xinhua news agency reported after quoting the police and local witnesses.

Witnesses further said that they had heard sustained gunfire inside the hotel.

However, the number of casualties is yet to be confirmed.

Al-Shabab was ejected from Mogadishu in 2011 and has since been driven from most of its other strongholds.

However, it still carries out frequent attacks across Somalia, as well as in neighbouring Kenya, whose soldiers form part of African Union-mandated peacekeeping forces that help defend the Somali government.