A car laden with explosives rammed into the gate of a hotel in centre of Somalia's port city of Kismayu followed by gunfire - a police officer and a resident said on Sunday.
The state-run Somali National Television said on Twitter security forces were dealing with a "terrorist incident" at the hotel, which al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab has taken responsibility for.
"There is a blast at Tawakal hotel and there is gunfire being heard," Mohamed Nur, a police captain, told Reuters from Kismayu.
