An unknown number of
hostages are being held in a shopping centre in the Kenyan capital
Nairobi, after a deadly assault by suspected al-Shabab militants.
At least 39 people died when members of the Somali Islamist group stormed the Westgate centre on Saturday.
There is now a heavy military presence in and around the
centre - including armoured vehicles - and gunfire can be heard from
inside the building.
Al-Shabab said it carried out the attack on the upmarket
shopping centre in response to Kenyan military operations in Somalia.
There are about 4,000 Kenyan troops in the south of Somalia, where they have been fighting the militants since 2011.
There are reports that the gunmen are still holed up in a supermarket.
MORE PICTURES AFTER THE CUT
At night descended outside the shopping complex, the siege continued
Many of those who were inside the Westgate centre when the gun battle began managed to flee, but some were trapped.
Armed police combed the corridors as terrified shoppers fled.
This woman who had been held by the gunmen was carried out of the building in a state of shock by the emergency services.
Some went to extraordinary lengths to escape.
This pregnant woman was separated from
her husband and two-year-old daughter during the attack. She hid with
about 20 others on the roof of the building and was eventually rescued
by police and reunited.
Security forces went from shop to shop to secure the building.
Two contingents of army special forces troops are reported to have moved inside the mall as dusk fell.
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