Reuters-Somali Insurgents Storm Hotel and Kill 31 People

Casualties in Somali hotel attack: Omar Faruk/Reuters

(Story reported by Ibrahim Mohamed for Reuters News)

MOGADISHU (Reuters) - Insurgents in army uniforms stormed a hotel in the Somali capital Mogadishu frequented by government officials on Tuesday, killing at least 31 people including legislators, the government said.

The hardline al Shabaab Islamists who have been fighting for three years to oust the fragile Western-backed "transitional government," and control most of the city, claimed the attack.

The Information Ministry said the 31 dead included six members of parliament and five government security personnel.

"The blood of the dead is leaking out of the hotel," said Information Minister Abdirahman Osman.

The assault underscored the failure of the government and more than 6,300 mostly Ugandan African Union peacekeepers to bring order after nearly two decades of anarchy, making Somalia a continual source of instability for east Africa.

Last month al Shabaab expanded its reach as far as Uganda, claiming a double suicide bombing of packed bars in the capital Kampala, to put pressure on it to pull its troops out.

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