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[h=4]Terror attack over, 147 dead at Kenya university[/h]More than 70 people were killed and 500 students were rescued Thursday after armed terrorists stormed a university in northern Kenya in an attack targeting Christians. At least 79 others were injured.
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The terror group Al-Shabaab is claiming responsibility for an early morning attack on Garissa University College in Kenya. At least 15 are feared dead. This same group carried out the 2013 attack at the Westgate mall in Nairobi. VPC
Students gather and watch from a distance outside Garissa University College on April 2.(Photo: AP)
NAIROBI — Nearly 150 people were killed and more than 500 students were rescued Thursday after armed terrorists stormed a university in northern Kenya in an attack targeting Christians. At least 79 people were injured.
Kenyan Interior Cabinet Secretary Joseph Nkaissery said late Thursday that the operation on the Garissa University campus had ended with all four terrorists killed. He said the death toll was confirmed at 147. Plans were underway to evacuate students and others affected by the attack.
U{PDATE: The operation at Garissa University College has ended, with all four terrorists killed.
— Disaster Operations (@NDOCKenya) April 2, 2015
The Somali-based Islamic terrorist group al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the attack that began early Thursday morning at the school located about 90 miles from the Somali border.
"We'll not allow terrorists to divide our country on religious lines," said Aden Duale, majority leader in Kenya's National Assembly.
Nkaissery said many of students were killed during morning prayers at a mosque. Jackson Kamau, a student at the university, said the militants killed those who were likely converts to Islam. Locals can easily differentiate between Somali Muslims born into Islam and those who have converted.
It is not clear if any of the college's 815 students remain missing. Earlier Thursday, government officials had said 500 students were rescued and about 300 were not yet accounted for.
Police Inspector General Joseph Boinett said a dusk-to-dawn curfew will be in place in four counties, including Garissa, starting Friday through April 16.
UPDATE: 70 fatalities, 79 injured, over 500 students rescued from the Garissa University College campus. Operations still ongoing.
— Disaster Operations (@NDOCKenya) April 2, 2015
Earlier, heavy gunfire was reported at the college as the Kenyan military tried to end the siege. Students said the gunmen separated Christians from Muslims and held hostages in a dormitory, Kenya's National Police Service said. Explosives were reportedly staged around the Christian hostages, police said. Kenyan soldiers had taken control of the other two dorms on campus.
Boinett said there was a shootout between the attackers and police officers earlier Thursday. "We have the reports that the attackers shot aimlessly while inside the university compound," he said.
Kenyan police were offering a $220,000 bounty for Mohammed Mohamud, also known as Dulyadin alias Gamadhere, who they believe is the mastermind of the attack, the Associated Press reported.
Students who were able to escape said gunmen stormed the university, setting off explosives and shooting people on the campus just after 5 a.m. local time.
"Most of us were asleep when the incident happened," said Nicholas Ntulu, a student at the university. "We heard heavy gunfire and explosions. Every person ran for dear life as we passed the gunmen. Several (students) were shot dead. I only saw three gunmen heading to the hostels.
"There was nobody to help us at the time of the attack," he added. "The police officers took more than an hour to arrive at the scene."
President Uhuru Kenyatta urged Kenyans to stay calm. "This is a moment for everyone throughout the country to be vigilant as we continue to confront and defeat our enemies," he said.
Kenyatta also ordered the inspector-general of police to accelerate the applications of 10,000 recruits for the Kenya Police College.
"We have suffered unnecessarily due to shortage of security personnel," he said. "Kenya badly needs additional officers, and I will not keep the nation waiting."
Frightened students rescued from the university gathered at a military camp near the Garissa airstrip.
"The sounds of gunfire was all over — we couldn't tell what was the right direction to go to be safe," said Ann Musyoka, a second year student. "We had to face the gunmen — they shot several people as we escaped towards the gate."
Schools officials said students reported the gunmen attended morning prayers at the campus mosque before heading to the dorm. The claim could not be independently verified.
"I was not at the institution when the incident occurred but several students phoned me crying over the attacks," said Jacktone Kweya, the dean of students. "When I tried calling them back their phones were off. It's very disturbing."
Victims were rushed to the Garissa Level Five Hospital. An aircraft with several doctors aboard left for the town to airlift the critically wounded to the capital of Nairobi.
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Gunmen attacked Garissa University College in eastern Kenya early April 2, shooting indiscriminately in campus hostels, killing at least two people and wounding four others, police said. AP
Robert Godec, the U.S. ambassador to Kenya, said the United States "strongly condemns" the attack.
"We extend our deepest condolences to all who have been affected," he said in a statement. "We also offer our profound appreciation and gratitude to the members of the Kenyan security services who are risking their lives to end this cowardly attack.
"The attack once again reinforces the need for all countries and communities to unite in the effort to combat violent extremism," he added.
The assault comes in the wake of an intelligence report issued last week by security officials warning that al-Shabab was planning an attack on major institutions in retaliation for Kenyan military action in Somalia as part of an African Union initiative against the group.
Al-Shabab, an al-Qaeda linked organization, has carried out several attacks in Garissa and across Kenya in the past few years, including the 2013 attack at the Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi that left 67 people dead, and others on mosques in Mombasa, a coastal city in the east.
Nairobi-based security analyst Abdiwahab Sheikh said the incident highlights how the government has failed to shore up security in the country.
"The government has not learned anything from the Westgate attack," he said. "How do you allow terrorists to take students hostage for more 10 hours? I think our security forces need to learn from the past."
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