Nairobi, January 15: A terrorist attack was reported in the Kenyan capital, with gunmen affiliated to the extremist group Al-Shabaab targeting an upscale hotel and an office complex. The site of the attack is DusitD2 compound, a top business premise of Nairobi. Among commercials buildings located in it, include several offices of international companies.

Nairobi police, along with the Kenyan anti-terrorist unit, has responded to the situation. The compound has been cordoned off, with vehicles being barred from entering upto 6 kilometre vicinity of the region. Additional forces are being called from the peripheries of the nation to respond to the attack. By the time this report was published, no casualties were reported. African Union, Somalia Forces kill 35 Al-Shabaab Militants.

Simon Crump, who works at one of the offices, said workers had barricaded themselves inside their offices after "several" explosions. "We have no idea what is happening. Gunshots are coming from multiple directions," he told AFP, adding that the people were terrified.

Police sirens echoed through the city and a helicopter buzzed overhead.

A reporter sent to the scene said the gunmen and security forces were exchanging gunfire.

"There was a bomb, there is a lot of gunfire," whispered another man working at the compound, asking not to be named. It was not immediately clear whether the incident was a robbery or an attack.

"All police teams have been dispatched to the scene where the incident is. As at now we are treating it as anything, including the highest attack," police spokesman Charles Owino said by phone.

"All police teams including anti-terror officers are at the scene," he said.

Flames and plumes of black smoke billowed into the sky from the parking lot of the compound where several vehicles were on fire, with scores of people fleeing the compound, some of them lightly injured.

The scenes in the Westlands suburb reminded Nairobians of a bloody terrorist attack in 2013 when Islamist gunmen stormed the Westgate mall, killing at least 67 people.

The country faced a spate of attacks after it sent its army into Somalia in October 2011 to fight the Islamist Shabaab group, affiliated to Al-Qaeda.

On April 2, 2015, another Shabaab attack killed 148 people at the university in Garissa, eastern Kenya.

(With agency inputs)

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jan 15, 2019 09:00 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).