Death Toll In Kenyan University Attack Hits 147 [Photos]

Earlier today, gunmen with affiliations to Al-Qaeda conducted a Kenyan University attack that has left 147 people dead and an entire country reeling.

According to CNN, Somalia-based Al-Shabaab militant group claimed responsibility for the assault at Garissa University College, making it the most deadly terrorist attack on Kenyan soil since the U.S. Embassy was bombed on August 7, 1998.

“It is a very sad day for Kenya,” Interior Ministry Joseph Nkaissery reportedly stated. “This is a moment for everyone throughout the country to be vigilant as we continue to confront and defeat our enemies,” Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta chimed in.

Aside from the murdered 147, Kenya’s National Disaster Operation Centre reported that 79 people were injured and 587 people had to be removed from the site.

Witnesses such as Joel Ayora told the press that the gunmen’s sole purposes were to kill anyone “except their fellows, the Muslims.”

“We were sleeping when we heard a loud explosion that was followed by gunshots and everyone started running for safety,” student Japhet Mwala recalled to the AFP.

Despite the massacre, four of the jihadists were reportedly killed by responding officials. The news come not even a week after President Obama announced his intentions to visit Kenya for the first time during his tenure in office.

Browse through the gallery below to see the scenery from the Kenyan University attack. Warning, the images are graphic and disturbing.

Embed from Getty Images