'7 Dead' as Car Bomb Hits Convoy of African Union Troops in Somalia
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية
A convoy of the African Union's AMISOM force was targeted by a car bomb just outside the Somali capital on Monday, witnesses and a Somali army source said, though it was not immediately clear if there were any casualties.
Contacted by Agence France Presse, a spokesman for the Shebab Islamist group said the group carried out the attack, saying it killed seven people, including three foreigners.
The attack took place near a checkpoint on the road linking Mogadishu and the town of Afgoye, "where a suicide bomber rammed his car into an AMISOM convoy," witness Abdulahi Mohamed said.
"There was a heavy explosion at the Alamada area... , we don't know about the casualties but I saw military ambulances rushing to the scene," he said.
A Somali military official, Omar Adan, confirmed the attack, but declined to give the number of casualties. He however blamed militants from the Shebab, which have multiplied attacks in the Somali capital since the start of the year.
"Al-Qaida linked militants, who have lost ground, are attempting desperate attacks," Adan said.
On Saturday, a car bomb went off in central Mogadishu near a hotel popular with government officials and businessmen, injuring at least one person, though no claims were made for the attack.
In February alone, major attacks in Mogadishu have included a car bomb at the gates of the airport, a major suicide attack on the presidential palace and a car bombing on a cafe close to the intelligence headquarters.
Hardline Shebab insurgents once controlled most of southern and central Somalia but withdrew from fixed positions in Mogadishu two years ago.
However, guerrilla units stage regular deadly attacks in the capital, and also claimed responsibility for last year's deadly attack in neighboring Kenya, when commandos stormed the upmarket Westgate mall, shooting shoppers and hurling grenades.
Government and AU troops have also come under repeated hit-and-run attacks in rural areas surrounding the settlements they capture from the Shebab.
