Bomb blast kills at least 2 in Somali capital

A heavy machine removes the wreckage following a car bomb blast in Mogadishu, Somalia on 13 February 2021 [Sadak Mohamed/Anadolu Agency]

At least two people were killed in the Somali capital on today, wounded when a bomb blast targeted a vehicle carrying a local government official, Anadolu Agency reports.

The attack took place near Bal’ad, where a main security checkpoint into Mogadishu is located, Ahmed Dahir, a local police official, told Anadolu Agency over the phone.

The attack was an improvised explosive device targeting the local government official, Dahir added.

“As far as I know, at least two people including a civilian were killed and several people including a civilian driving a moto rickshaw were wounded in the attack,” he said.

READ: UN: 1.3m people displaced in Somalia in 2020

Residents who spoke to Anadolu Agency over phone said they heard a huge explosion.

No group has yet claimed responsibility for the bomb attack but Somali-based Al-Shabaab, an Al-Qaeda-affiliated terror group, has been responsible for many deadly bombings in the Horn of Africa country.

The group claimed on Sunday that it had attacked several African Union peacekeeping mission forces bases in southern Somalia overnight.

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