NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) - The Latest on this week’s Kenya hotel attack (all times local):
7:15 p.m.
Kenyan officials say they have arrested six people suspected of involvement in Tuesday’s extremist attack in Nairobi, bringing the total number of detainees to 12.
Muthui Mwongera, the police chief in Kitui east of Nairobi, said Saturday that one of four people arrested in the area is a Somali with a British passport.
Police say they have also arrested the wife and father of Mahir Khalid Riziki, who was identified as the suicide bomber in the attack by Islamic militants. Riziki’s relatives were detained in the port city of Mombasa.
On Friday, a Canadian national and five other people suspected of helping attackers stage the assault on the dusitD2 hotel complex appeared in court as prosecutors investigated them for suspected terror offenses.
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1:30 p.m.
Kenya plans to allow many more private security guards around the country to carry firearms following a deadly attack by Islamic extremists in Nairobi.
The Kenyan government agency monitoring private security says the goal is to enhance the guards’ ability to protect the public because they are often the first responders before state security forces can get to the scene.
The Private Security Regulatory Authority made the announcement on Friday, three days after attackers laid siege to the dusitD2 hotel, shopping and office complex.
A security company confirmed that two employees were killed in the attack.
Authorities plan a vetting process to expose any suspected criminals within security companies before guards are licensed to have guns. Currently, very few private guards in Kenya are allowed to carry guns.
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