Truck bomb Kills ten in Mogadishu

  1. Posted on Wednesday 5 October 2011 - 07:00
    Adow moha
    Adow Mohamed, AfricaNews reporter in Nairobi, Kenya
    A deadly truck bomb exploded in Somalia's capital Mogadishu on Tuesday morning, killing dozens and leaving scores injured. According to witnesses, shocking scenes were seen with 'many' dead bodies scattered across the streets. The victims included students who were awarded scholarships to study in Turkey which has become a major supporter of Somalia in recent times.
    Somalia
    Health officials and paramedics who handled the casualties said about 55 people lost their lives and scores fatally wounded, with the injured jamming the dilapidated and ill-equipped hospitals.

    The bomber was reportedly on a truck stacked high with scrap metals, to conceal the explosive. The target was a structure used by Somalia’s transitional federal government. According to news sources, the Al-Shabaab militant group claimed responsibility for the attack.

    In August the group retracted from Mogadishu for the first time in years for what they described as “tactical move”. Later the militia’s leaders vowed to look for soft spots and targets.

    Somalia has been without government since 1991, when clan warlords overthrew the then president of Somalia Siad Barre. Since then, there have been many attempts to create a functioning central government to no success.
    For two decades, Somalia has remained caught up in chaos, lawlessness and starvation.

    A weak and fractious transitional government headed by Sheikh Shariff Sheikh Ahmed weakly controls parts of Mogadishu.

    Al-Shabaab militias are linked to Al Qaeda and have many times used Al-Qaeda tactics in Somalia, including remote-controlled roadside attacks.

    The Al-Shabaab have previously attacked government forces, African Union peacekeepers (AMISOM) based in Mogadishu, Somali Members of parliament and even students at a medical school graduation ceremony. But the bombing on Tuesday may have been the deadliest yet.

    Though, Al-Shabaab is reportedly racked by internal divisions and dwindling resources, they seem to be regrouping and gaining strength.

    Last week, Al-Shabaab forces attacked Dobley on the Kenya- Somalia border causing a panic within Kenyan security services.

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