2002 Mombasa attacks

2002 Mombasa attacks
Part of terrorism in Kenya
This Arkia Boeing 757-300 was fired at by surface to air missiles as part of the 2002 Mombasa attacks. It is pictured here 3 years later at Munich Airport.[1]

The attack site

Location of Mombasa in Kenya
LocationMombasa, Kenya
Coordinates4°03′00″S 39°39′58″E / 4.05°S 39.666°E / -4.05; 39.666
Date28 November 2002; 21 years ago (2002-11-28)
TargetIsraeli hotel and plane
Attack type
Car bombing, suicide attack, attempted shootdown
WeaponsSurface-to-air missile
Deaths13 victims (3 Israelis, 10 Kenyans) and 3 suicide bombers[2]
Injured80
Perpetratorsal-Qaeda
Location of Kenya (green) on the African continent (light grey)

The 2002 Mombasa attacks were a two-pronged terrorist attack on 28 November 2002 in Mombasa, Kenya against an Israeli-owned hotel and a plane belonging to Arkia Airlines. An all-terrain vehicle crashed through a barrier outside the Paradise Hotel and blew up, killing 13 and injuring 80. At the same time, attackers fired two surface-to-air missiles at an Israeli charter plane.[3] The Paradise Hotel was the only Israeli-owned hotel in the Mombasa area.[4] The attacks were believed to be orchestrated by al-Qaeda operatives in Somalia in an attempt to disrupt the Israeli tourist industry on the African continent. Much speculation has occurred as to who the perpetrators are, but no complete list of suspects has been defined. The attack was the second al-Qaeda terrorist operation in Kenya, following the bombing of the U.S. embassy in Nairobi in 1998.[5] Following the attack, the UN Security Council and other nations condemned the bombing.

  1. ^ "ASN Aircraft incident Boeing 757-3E7 4X-BAW Mombasa-Moi International Airport". Retrieved 19 March 2019.
  2. ^ Unanswered questions regarding Kenya terror attacks. World Socialist Web Site. 5 December 2002.
  3. ^ "Israel evacuates tourists from Kenya". BBC News. 29 November 2002.
  4. ^ "Kenyan hotel staff unpaid". BBC News. 5 December 2002.
  5. ^ "Al Qaeda claims responsibility for Kenya attacks - Dec. 3, 2002". edition.cnn.com. Retrieved 15 December 2019.