Garissa University College attack

2015 Garissa University College attack
Location of Garissa Town in Kenya
Location	Garissa, Kenya
Coordinates	00°27′05″S 39°39′41″E / 0.45139°S 39.66139°E / -0.45139; 39.66139
Date	2 April 2015 (2015-04-02) 05:30 (local time) (UTC+03:00)
Target	Christian students
Attack type	Hostage-taking, mass shooting, hate crime, terrorist attack
Weapons	AK-47s and explosive belts
Deaths	148
Injured	79
Perpetrators	Al-Shabaab
Motive	Kenyan participation in the AU Mission to Somalia, anti-Christian sentiment

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On 2 April 2015, gunmen stormed the Garissa University College in Garissa, Kenya, killing 148 people, and injuring at least 79. The militant groups Al-Qaeda and Al-Shabaab, which the gunmen claimed to belong to, took responsibility for the attack. The gunmen took over 700 students hostage, freeing Muslims and killing those who identified as Christians. The siege ended the same day, when all four of the attackers were killed. Five men were later arrested in connection with the attack, and a bounty was placed for the arrest of a suspected organizer.

The attack was the deadliest in Kenya since the 1998 United States embassy bombings, and is the second deadliest overall, with more casualties than the 2002 Mombasa attacks, the 2013 Westgate shopping mall attack, the 2014 Nairobi bus bombings, the 2014 Gikomba bombings, the 2014 Mpeketoni attacks and the 2014 Lamu attacks. It is the deadliest mass shooting and school shooting in modern history.