Kenya's interior minister says the country is safe and the situation is under control after a terrorist attack Tuesday afternoon on a hotel and shopping center in Nairobi. At least 15 people were killed. But the death toll will undoubtedly climb as police and soldiers make their way through the hotel and office complex.
Correspondent Mohammed Yusuf reports for VOA news from Nairobi.
The attack targeted the Dusit D2 hotel and office complex.
Witnesses say they heard explosions and saw armed men firing at people on site.
About two hours after the attack, Kenyan police chief Joseph Boinnet emerged and spoke to reporters. "We regret to inform that today at 3 o'clock in the afternoon, a group of unknown armed assailants attacked the Dusit complex in what we suspect could be a terror attack. Security and emergency services responded quickly to the incident and we immediately cordoned off the area and the situation is being managed and we've made evacuation of many persons in the complex and the operation is still ongoing as we speak."
Boinnet said Kenyan security agencies are in the process of securing the hotel.
The Dusit D2 hotel and shops are in an upscale Nairobi neighborhood that is popular with American, European and Indian tourists.
Survivors say gunmen wandered through a café, gunning down people as they sat at tables.
This is VOA news.
The House of Commons in Great Britain on Tuesday overwhelmingly defeated Prime Minister Theresa May's Brexit plan for Britain's departure from the European Union.
The vote 432-202 now leaves in doubt how the UK will depart from the continent's 28-member bloc of nations by the planned March 29 date.
The call from Theresa May was to approve what she said was the "democratic decision" of voters in a referendum two and a half years ago to leave the EU.
In a stunning decision on Tuesday, the International Criminal Court acquitted former Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo of war crimes charges.
Correspondent Lisa Bryant reports from Paris that the ruling comes amid growing doubts about the effectiveness of the ICC as a court of last resort against the world's most heinous offenses.
"... grants the defense motions for acquittal from all charges against Mr. Laurent Gbagbo and Mr. Charles Blé Goudé. No come on ...."
Former Ivorian leader Laurent Gbagbo looked blank as he listened to the verdict of his acquittal at the International Criminal Court. But his supporters cheering in the public gallery forced presiding judge Cuno Tarfusser to call for order.
The court found ICC prosecutors had failed to prove their case against Gbagbo and fellow defendant, ex-youth minister Charles Blé Goudé.
For Gbagbo and his backers, it was the end of a long fight - at least for now. Prosecutors can appeal the court's decision.
President Trump on Tuesday said a new migrant caravan leaving Honduras justifies his demand for a wall at the U.S.-Mexico border to keep them from surging into the United States.
The Honduran caravan left the crime-ridden city of San Pedro Sula in the early hours Tuesday, with more migrants expected to join the caravan later in the day.
President Trump's pick for attorney general, William Barr, on Tuesday promised to shield the special counsel's Russia investigation from political pressures.
He told members of the Senate that he takes issue with Trump's labeling the investigation of his inner circle's contacts with Moscow as a "witch hunt."
President Trump is reportedly thinking about recognizing Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó as the country's legitimate president, CNN citing three unidentified sources.
Guaidó is the leader of Venezuela's opposition-led Congress. Last week, he said he was willing to replace socialist President Nicholás Maduro.
You can find more on these and other late breaking and developing stories, from around the world, around the clock, at voanews.com and on the VOA news mobile app. I'm Christopher Cruise, VOA news.
