A shopping centre in the Kenyan capital Nairobi was still in the hands of terrorists, almost 24 hours after an attack was launched that killed at least 59 people.
Kenyan troops were locked in a fierce firefight with the militants, who had entered the shopping centre in the smart suburb of Westlands at around midday on Saturday. The AFP news agency said Israeli soldiers had entered the building and were attempting to rescue people who were still held hostage.
Kenya's Red Cross said that 49 people were still unaccounted for, and 205 had been treated for their injuries. More than 1,000 people were evacuated in the standoff.
Al Shabaab, the al Qaeda-linked militants from Somalia, said that they had launched the attack in retaliation for Kenya's presence in Somalia.
They said on Twitter that they would not negotiate.
Joseph Ole Lenku, the interior minister, said 59 people were confirmed dead.
"A number of attackers are still in the building, and range between 10 to 15 gunmen," he said in a statement. "We believe there are some innocent people in the building, that is why the operation is delicate."
The government forces had secured the first and second floors of the Westgate Centre, but parts of the ground floor and basement remained under control of the terrorists.
The Kenya Red Cross was expanding its triage centre within sight of the Westgate Mall early on Sunday, with a fleet of ambulances parked ready to take the wounded to hospital when the siege ends.
Four hostages were rescued early on Sunday, managing to escape from the shopping centre's basement car park. They were unharmed. Three police officers were treated for minor injuries.
Anxious family members who had been waiting all night for news complained of a lack of information in the 24 hours since the assault started, at 1230pm (1030am London) on Saturday.
Moses Wetangula, Kenya's former foreign minister, said that the time that the the operation to free people still trapped in the building had already taken was "not inordinately long".
"This is a very delicate mission," he said. "We must make sure that the process of rescue does not lead to more civilian casualties.
"The information on the number of people inside is still scant. This mall is a huge structure with many shops, and we know the attackers are not few. People doing the rescue need to minimise casualties."
Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta said in a televised address to the nation late on Saturday that he had "personally lost family members in the Westgate attack".
"Let me make it clear. We shall hunt down the perpetrators wherever they run to. We shall get them. We shall punish them for this heinous crime," he said.
The attack was the worst in Kenya since an al Qaeda suicide bombing at the US embassy killed more than 200 in 1998.
The militants stormed the upmarket shopping centre, which is part Israeli owned, when it was filled with weekend shoppers. Throwing grenades and carrying AK-47s, the masked gunmen swept the centre, spraying bullets at anyone who moved. Terrified Kenyans and expats sought shelter inside shops, toilet cubicles and in air conditioning vents.
Kenneth Kerich, who was shopping when the attack happened, described scenes of utter panic.
"I suddenly heard gunshots and saw everyone running around so we lied down. I saw two people who were lying down and bleeding, I think they were hit by bullets," he said.
Sudjar Singh, who works at the shopping centre, said: "The gunmen tried to fire at my head but missed. I saw at least 50 people shot."
Police at the scene said a suspect wounded in the firefight had been detained and taken to hospital under armed guard, but later died of his injuries.
Paris confirmed that two French citizens were among those killed in what it condemned as a "cowardly" attack. Canada's Prime Minister Stephen Harper said two Canadians, one of them a diplomat, were among the dead, while official Chinese news agency Xinhua said one Chinese woman was killed and her child wounded. Two Indians and a South Korean were also among the dead.
The United States said its citizens were reportedly among those injured by the "despicable" act. British Foreign Secretary William Hague said there were "undoubtedly British nationals caught up in this so we should be ready for that".
The UN Security Council condemned "in the strongest possible terms" the attack.
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