Survivors recall terror in Nairobi mall

Nairobi's Westgate shopping mall, part Israeli-owned and often crowded with well-to-do Kenyans, expatriates, diplomats and United Nations workers, has long been seen as a soft target for Islamic militants.

The sprawling multi-storey complex, which opened in 2007, is known for its shops carrying trendy foreign brands as well as its friendly cafes and restaurants. Their terraces, however, are adjacent to a road along which cars can pass without security checks.

Entering the mall is normally easy, involving a cursory body check, sometimes with a small metal detector.

Alerts issued intermittently by foreign embassies over the past two years have regularly listed Nairobi's shopping malls as possible targets - but the crowds have not stayed away.

A Western intelligence source said: "It was only a question of time until a mall was targeted."

Kenneth Kerich, who was shopping when the attack happened, described scenes of panic.

"I suddenly heard gunshots and saw everyone running around, so we lay down. I saw two people who were lying down and bleeding, I think they were hit by bullets," he said after he managed to escape the carnage.