Rajkot: Officials in Saurashtra and Kutch have said that at least seven Gujarati migrants have been killed in the 26/11-type terror attack on Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi.
Four of those killed are Gujarati women. All of them were from Saurashtra and Kutch. Th toll may rise as more bodies are yet to be recovered from the mall.
Gujaratis were among several people held hostage by the Al Shabaab terrorists inside the mall on Sunday.
Dinesh Vaghjiani (29), hailing from Sukhpar village near Bhuj, was inside the mall during the attack and managed to escape.
He said, "There are many Gujaratis trapped inside the mall. About 7,000 people visit the mall every weekend."
Among the victims was Mitul Shah whose family migrated from Jamnagar and runs an oil exporting firm in Kenya. By late evening sources confirmed the death of Rajen Solanki and Anuj Shah.
In Rajkot, the Vaya family lost two of its daughters-in-law - Jyoti Vaya (35) and Malti Vaya (33).
They had gone to the mall on Saturday to attend a children's activity when they were killed. Other members of the family managed to escape.
The two were married to brothers Dharmesh, a bank manager, and Ramesh, who was employed at a provision store.
"We can't sleep after getting a call from our relatives in Nairobi," said Hemant Vaya, a jeweller in Rajkot who is the uncle of Dharmesh and Ramesh. "We are feeling helpless and constantly watching TV for updates," he said.
In Jamnagar, Narandas Mashroo and his family lost their 16-year-old granddaughter Neha in the attack.
Nehal Vekaria (17) of Naranpar village near Bhuj was also killed in the attack.
"Like every Saturday, she had gone to participate in a cooking competition at the mall when the terrorists attacked," said her grandfather Vaghjibhai Vekaria.
