At least 15 people are dead after a truck bomb in the Somalian capital of Mogadishu.
A Kenyan diplomat, a Chinese embassy guard and three journalists are among those killed in the attack on the city’s Jazeera Hotel.
The attack has raised fears of an escalation of force by the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab group battling the Somalian government.
Al-Shabab had been pushed out of the capital by Somali forces backed by troops from the African Union. The group said the bomb was in retaliation for the offensive.
The front of the five-storey hotel, which used to host diplomats, journalists and visiting heads of state, had been blown off.
In a visit to neighbouring Ethiopia, US President Barack Obama said the bombing is a reminder that groups like al-Shabab offer nothing but destruction and must be stopped.
Police said the bomb was made of a tonne of explosives and destroyed dozens of nearby homes.
