MOGADISHU (Somalia) – Gunmen stormed a popular hotel in the heart of Mogadishu, Somalia’s capital, on Sunday, killing at least 15 people, Somali officials said.

The militants first blew up the front gate with a car bomb, shooting guests and hotel workers, and then battling with security forces from the hotel’s rooftop for several hours.

At least 15 people were killed, medical and police officials said. Islamist militant group al-Shabaab, an al-Qaeda affiliate, claimed responsibility for the attack via a Somali radio station run by the group.

It has been reported that the attack on the Sahafi Hotel was immediately claimed to by the Shabaab militant group.

”Mujahedeen entered and took over Sahafi hotel where enemies lived,” Sheikh Abdiasis Abu Musab, the Shabaab’s military operations spokesman, told Reuters on Sunday, using a common term for Islamic guerrilla fighters.