Al-Qaeda-linked Islamist militants say they are still holding hostages as Kenyan troops battle for a fourth day to end the bloody siege at a Nairobi shopping centre.
Sporadic gunfire and a series of explosions at the upmarket Westgate mall broke out again at dawn on Tuesday, hours after officials claimed Kenyan troops had wrested back "control" of the sprawling complex from Somalia's al-Shabab insurgents, who are said to include Americans and a British woman.
At least 65 shoppers, staff and soldiers have been killed and close to 200 wounded in the siege, but concerns are high that the toll may rise, with the al-Shabab boasting about "countless number of dead bodies still scattered inside the mall".
The fate of 63 people listed as missing remains unclear.
"The hostages who were being held by the mujahedeen inside Westgate are still alive, looking quite disconcerted but, nevertheless, alive," the al-Shabab said in their latest Twitter message.
However, Kenyan officials have said all the hostages are believed to have been freed, with the interior ministry saying Tuesday the assault was "very near the end".
Security sources said "one or two" militants were barricaded in or around a casino on one of the upper floors of the complex.
Meanwhile, explosive experts were defusing devices set up by the militants, police said, adding another dangerous element to the siege, which has now dragged on for over 72-hours.
Part of the mall's rooftop parking also collapsed on Tuesday, security sources said, following a fierce fire the day before.
Al-Shabab fighters stormed the crowded mall midday on Saturday, tossing grenades, firing automatic weapons and sending panicked shoppers fleeing.
Kenyan Foreign Minister Amina Mohamed said among the fighters were several American nationals and a British woman, which media reports have speculated could be a Muslim convert known as the "White Widow".
Government spokesman Manoah Esipisu told AFP that special forces were now "sanitising" the complex in case "there are a couple of them hiding in a remote room or corner".
"We think that everyone, the hostages, have been evacuated," Esipisu said.
Special forces on Monday killed at least three gunmen and wounded several in bitter fighting in the part Israeli-owned complex, popular with wealthy Kenyans and expatriates.
Three Kenyan soldiers on Tuesday died from injuries sustained in those gun battles, the army said. Eight others remain in hospital.
Kenyan army chief Julius Karangi said the attackers were from "different countries". Many foreign fighters, including Somalis with dual nationalities, are members of the al-Shabab force.
