A Kenyan shopping centre remains under siege by armed insurgents with more than 30 people believed to be trapped inside.
Between 10 and 15 masked attackers entered Nairobi's Westgate shopping mall on Saturday, with the Somali militant group Al-Shebab claiming responsibility for the siege.
Nairobi resident George Omondi has told SBS reporters Gode Migerano and Rhiannon Elston it's believed the hostages are being held on the upper floors of the shopping centre, possibly in a movie theatre.
Listen to the full interview below.
"The rest of the city is quiet, of course security has been heightened in all the buildings, government and other places," he said.
Reports of gunshots and loud explosions overnight have not been directly explained by Kenyan Security Forces who are busy monitoring the centre, he added.
"The information has been scant, because the security forces say when this is reported live, what is happening is they are also watching inside so they've stopped streaming out what is coming out," he said.
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The upmarket mall attracts wealthy Kenyans and expatriates working for the United Nations or within embassies and has been threatened in the past by militants, said Mr Omondi.
"This is a big shopping mall and the ownership of this shopping mall has some shareholders who are Israeli, so this has always been a prime target for them," he said.
As the stand-off entered its third day, Mr Omondi said "tonnes" of Kenyan security forces have now surrounded the building, as well as small contingents of foreign forces.
"The Kenyan police is there, the Kenyan Defence Force is in there, and also some special forces," he said. "The place is full."
Early reports suggest the insurgents were targeting non-Muslims.
"People coming out the building, some of them were asked to recite Muslim or Arabic words, and those who were able to recite were let out but the people who could not were then taken hostage," said Mr Omondi.
MILITANTS THREATEN REMAINING HOSTAGES
Somali Shebab militants on Monday threatened to kill hostages who remain inside the building.
"We authorise the mujahedeen inside the building to take actions against the prisoners as much as they are pressed," Ali Mohamud Rage said in a statement posted on an Islamist website.
"We are telling Christians advancing onto the mujahedeen to have mercy for their prisoners who will bear the brunt of any force directed against the mujahedeen," Rage added.
The Al-Qaeda-linked group claimed to be in contact with the fighters inside the mall. It also said the gunmen were battling both Kenyan and Israeli forces.
As the stand-off entered its third day, sustained bursts of rapid gunfire erupted at dawn and lasted 15 minutes, and soldiers posted around the complex ducked for cover.
This was followed by three big explosions, AFP correspondents at the scene said.
The Shebab have not said how many people were being held by the dozen-or-so attackers, who marched into the sprawling four-storey complex at midday Saturday, spraying shoppers with machine gunfire and tossing grenades.
AUSSIE AMONG VICTIMS
A dual Australian-UK national is among the victims of the unfolding Nairobi shopping mall siege, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade says.
"Advice received from the Australian High Commission in Nairobi confirms that an Australian-UK dual national was among those killed in the terrorist attack on the Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi," a DFAT spokeswoman told AAP late on Sunday.
"The Australian government deeply regrets this senseless loss of life and extends deepest sympathies to the family of the victim.
"It is not appropriate to name the individual."
Consular assistance will be extended to the family of the person killed, but no identifying details have been released.
At least 68 people were killed and 175 wounded when al-Qaeda-linked Somali militants stormed an upmarket shopping centre in the Kenyan capital, according to local officials.
Between 10 and 15 gunmen are believed to be holed up in the building with an unknown number of hostages, a full day after the carnage began.
DFAT says it's received confirmation that two Canadian nationals have been killed, including a diplomat, and the French government has advised that two of its nationals are among the victims.
One New Zealand national has been confirmed as injured.
"The situation on the ground remains fluid," DFAT's spokeswoman said.
"DFAT has received advice from several Australians who were caught up in the attack and managed to escape to safety."
Among them is Melbourne woman Sarah Williamson, who reportedly survived by huddling in a phone store.
The 23-year-old was in the mall with her father, who works for the UN, when she heard the first explosions.
"She heard the first grenade go off and said, `What was that, dad?'," her mother Linda has told Fairfax Radio Network.
"Then he heard the guns firing and he knew exactly what it was and he said, `We're under attack, everybody to the back of the room.'"
The Eltham woman spent six hours trapped in the store before she could run to safety.
Foreign Minister Julie Bishop has condemned the terrorist attack and expressed her sympathy to Kenyans and President Uhuru Kenyatta, who has lost family members in the incident.
"The thoughts of all Australians are with the victims and their families," she said in a statement.
Prime Minister Tony Abbott was briefed on the unfolding crisis earlier on Sunday.
Australians still in Kenya have been urged to avoid all public places in Nairobi for the next 24-48 hours and closely monitor local media.
People with concerns about family or friends in Kenya should try to contact them directly or if unsuccessful phone the DFAT consular emergency centre on (02) 6261 3305.
