Kenya's national police chief says the coordinated attack on a Nairobi hotel began with an explosion that targeted three vehicles outside a bank while a suicide bomber blew up in the hotel lobby.
Joseph Boinnet says the lobby blast severely injured a number of hotel guests.
He says the operation against the attackers is "still ongoing" and various offices have been secured.
Authorities still have not released a death toll while witnesses have reported seeing up to five bodies.
The al-Shabab extremist group has claimed responsibility for the attack. It occurred a short distance from the Westgate Mall, which al-Shabab attacked in 2013, killing 67 people.
A Kenyan intelligence official says the country had been on high alert since November with information about potential attacks on high-profile targets in Nairobi, but the extremists confused security officials by changing target locations.Â
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