PM Barre calls for unity against Al-Shabaab, vows accountability

Somalia’s prime minister called for unity in the fight against Al-Shabaab extremists at the backdrop of a 30-hour-long siege of Hayat hotel in the capital Mogadishu by the group that claimed the lives of more than 20 people.

Hamza Abdi Barre, who recently announced his government, addressed the reporters late Sunday following his visit to a hospital where the wounded victims of the attack were receiving treatment. “I call on the Somali people to unite to fight against the enemy and unite to liberate so that what they [Al-Shabaab] did now will never happen again,” Barre said.

He noted that the fight against the group that he branded “children of hell” has “already started taking places around several locations,” without providing further details.

The PM also vowed to hold the government accountable for any negligence that facilitated the siege. “There will be accountability in the government, no one in the government will escape accountability, anyone who neglected the responsibility he was entrusted with will be held accountable,” he warned.

The siege began on Friday evening when Al-Shabaab gunmen stormed Hayat hotel popular with government officials.

At least 21 people have been confirmed and 117 others injured, according to Health Minister Ali Haji Adan on Sunday.

The attack is the deadliest in Somalia by the group since the election of Hassan Sheikh Mohamud as Somalia’s president in May.