Nairobi, Kenya: 59 Dead, 175 Wounded or Hurt, Not to Mention Benghazi and Pakistan

It began yesterday at the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya. A jihad attack apparently by 5 members of al Shabaab, an arm of al Qaeda with links, of course, to the Muslim Brotherhood, told all Muslims to leave the mall and then began throwing hand grenades and shooting men, women, and children at will with AK 47s. It is believed that at least on jihadist is a woman. They all wore white bandannas, military-style garb with grenades pinned to their shirts, and according to one survivor, they appeared to be well trained.

Al Shabaab, the group that claims responsibility for the attack, went on Twitter to make their statements (see tweets below).

As I write this, the situation is still going on with police and military personnel on the scene. It is believed that the Islamic terrorists are holding perhaps 10 to 15 hostages, but at this moment, there are 49 people unaccounted for. In all, 59 people were killed, 175 wounded or injured. Of the dead that are known, 3 are British, 2 are Canadian, and one of the victims is a Canadian diplomat Annemarie Desloges. There are also 2 Frenchmen among the dead, many Kenyans and other individuals. During the attack, police and military were able to lead about 1000 people from the mall to safety. The US State Department confirms that there were Americans in the mall, but their circumstances are not known at this time. 

Kenyan president, Uhuru Kenyatta vows to "hunt down the perpetrators wherever they run to," and it was learned that Mr. Kenyatta's nephew and his fiancée were among the slaughtered. President Obama has contacted President Kenyatta this morning.

Many of the wounded were taken to Kenyatta National Hospital where, ironically, they had to deal with a fire on their premises while all of this was taking place. The fire was put under control and there were no injuries.

The Kenyan government has asked for assistance by the Israeli Special Forces. It is not known to what extent the ISF will assist in the hostage situation, but no doubt we will discover the answer to this probably some time today.

Another story that hasn't jumped out at the public is the suicide bombing in Pakistan of a Christian funeral gathering. In this case, 77 people were killed when a suicide bomber blew up at a church.

One person interviewed at the Westgate Mall scene of carnage told reporters, "Why would these people do this to us?" These comments continue to amaze me when they come from people who do not need to wear headgear to keep from injuring themselves running into walls. 

These people to that to you because it is their religious duty to do that to you. Those of us who are not Muslim, are infidels in their minds. We are dirty, evil, and akin to being apes and pigs, depending upon your religious affiliation. Those who are atheists or gay, do not deserve to live, as they see it. When we accept this, then we can do something about dealing with it. But if we sit around scratching our gluteus maximus, soon we will have no gluteus maximus to scratch. Remember, any religion that is willing to have a child or adult blow him or herself up to commit jihad and attain Paradise, cannot be reasoned with and must be stopped.

If you don't see Islam as a huge threat to global peace, then you must be a liberal who forgot to wear your helmet when you ran head-on into the wall, or you just came out of a Woodstock-induced coma.

My latest novel, Jihad Joe, is about Islamic terrorism and suspense.  In it I challenge the precepts of the religion through my protagonist, Zed Nill, a journalist, captured by terrorists and who is destined to be killed if the American President refuses to release three Gitmo prisoners.  Of course, American policy demands we never give in to terrorists, and for Zed, the clock is ticking.

Jihad Joe Soft Cover 

click here for ebook version  

My other blog New York Canuck

Tweet