Death toll rises in Somali hotel bombing

At least 39 people are now known to have died when suicide bombers and gunmen attacked a hotel in Mogadishu.



The Somali capital was in uproar durting the attack on the Sahafi hotel, near the country's criminal investigations department.



Two car bombs were followed by a scooter bomb in the busy street outside the hotel, and many victims were taken to hopitals, some suffering from gunshot wounds.



"My friend and I were in a minibus going home near Banadir hospital. The car behind us hit Sahafi Hotel and exploded and I was wounded and ran from the scene. I was very shocked and lost consciousness and I woke up to find myself in this hospital," said one survivor.



Guards at the Sahafi hotel and the adjacent CID office opened fire after two suicide car bombs went off on Friday afternoon, A third explosion from a bomb placed in a three-wheeled "tuk-tuk" vehicle near the hotel also hit the busy street.
The militant Islamist group al Shabaab, linked to al Qaeda, claimed responsibility for the attack.