Friday January 18, 2019
By Reuben Kyama and Rick Gladstone
The burial of one the victims of the attack on Wedesday. At least 21 people were killed by the assault on a Nairobi hotel-shopping complex.Luis Tato/Agence France- Press - Getty Images
NAIROBI, Kenya — The police intensified their search on Thursday for the plotters of the deadly assault on a Nairobi hotel-shopping complex, as Kenyan news services said at least 11 people had been arrested, including a suspected financier.
The assault, which began Tuesday afternoon and lasted more than 18 hours, killed at least 21 people, including a police officer. Fifteen of the victims were Kenyan, one was American, one was British and the others were of undetermined African nationality, the authorities said.
Five assailants also were killed and 700 people were evacuated from the complex in one of the Kenyan capital’s most secure areas.
The Shabab, an affiliate of Al Qaeda based in Somalia that has been attacking targets in Kenya for years, claimed responsibility while the assault was still underway.
The initial arrests were reported late Wednesday by Joseph Boinnet, the chief of the national police, who told reporters in Nairobi that “two key suspects believed to have facilitated the attack” were in custody.
KTN News and other services said at least nine more people were seized on Thursday, including a woman who had lived with one of the suspects. The police did not officially confirm those arrests.
Many Kenyans have lauded the police for how quickly they responded to the assault on the complex, known as 14 Riverside, which houses the Thai-owned DusitD2 Hotel, offices, restaurants and shops.