NEW YORK, Sept. 22, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- AJC stands shoulder-to-shoulder with the government and people of Kenya, as the country endures a horrific terrorist attack in a popular shopping mall in Nairobi.

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Shabab, a Somali-based Islamist group affiliated with al-Qaeda, has claimed credit for the attack, which began yesterday, and has left at least 59 dead and more than 175 wounded.

"Our hearts go out to the families of the victims and our prayers are with the wounded in the hope of their full recovery," said AJC Executive Director David Harris. "Tragically, the radical Islamist group Shabab has once again demonstrated the limitless depths of its depravity, having targeted innocent men, women and children who had simply set out to shop, dine and enjoy time in the shopping mall."

The United States has designated the al-Qaeda-affiliated Shabab a terrorist group.

Several terrorists remain inside the Nairobi mall in a stand-off with Kenyan security forces.

SOURCE American Jewish Committee

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