Somali security forces have ended a terrorist siege on a popular hotel in the capital Mogadishu during which at least 17 people were killed, police said Monday.

The attackers – Al-Shabab terrorists – were killed around midnight, ending the attack, police officer Ahmed Bashane told Deutsche Presse-Agentur (DPA).

Several civilians, security guards, hotel security personnel, a suicide bomber and three other attackers are among the dead, according to the police.

The terrorist attack began on Sunday afternoon when a vehicle loaded with explosives crashed into the entrance gate of the Afrik hotel, near Mogadishu’s strategic K-4 junction, on Sunday afternoon, police spokesperson Sadiq Adan Ali told Reuters.

A number of armed gunmen then quickly invaded the hotel, opening fire on staff and patrons inside, he said. Government forces responded to the attack and gunfire could be heard coming from the hotel. Police rescued many people from the hotel, including its owner and an army general. Up to 30 people were injured during the attack and had been taken to hospital, police said.

Al-Shabab terrorists claimed responsibility for the attack through their Andalus radio station.

"We know, they have changed nothing from their usual tactic, ramming explosives into a building and following up, assaulting with rifles," Ali said.

In a separate incident, at least eight children have died and scores of others were wounded when a bomb went off in the Golweyn area, about 40 kilometers (25 miles) north of the coastal town of Merca, some 120 kilometers (74 miles) south of Mogadishu.

Al-Shabab terrorists often target hotels where politicians, security forces but also civilians meet. For years, the terrorists have been fighting for supremacy in the impoverished country in the Horn of Africa and control large parts of the south and center.

On Feb. 8, Somalia is scheduled to hold a presidential election.