According to Somalia’s president, the country’s bloodiest attack since a truck bombing at the exact location five years ago killed more than 500 people; at least 100 people were killed in Saturday’s two-car explosions at a famous intersection in the capital.
At the scene of the blasts in Mogadishu, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud informed reporters that almost 300 additional people had been hurt.
We can’t transport all the victims outside the nation for treatment.
Therefore, he said that we beg our international allies and Muslims worldwide to send their medical professionals here.
Al-Qaida-affiliated al-Shabab, an extremist group that frequently attacks the capital and governs vast portions of the nation, took credit and claimed it had targeted the education ministry.
It stated that the ministry was an “enemy base” that was “dedicated to pulling Somali children from the Islamic faith” and that non-Muslim nations supported it.
Al-Shabab often avoids taking credit for mass casualty attacks like the 2017 explosion, but it has become incensed by the government’s high-profile current offensive that also attempts to shut down its financial network.
The group urged civilians to avoid government buildings and declared it is committed to fighting until Islamic law is implemented nationwide.
According to the newly elected president, the Republic of Somalia is still at war with al-Shabab, and “we are winning.”
The president, prime minister, and other senior officials were meeting that day to discuss stepping up efforts to combat violent extremism, particularly al-Shabab when the Mogadishu incident occurred.
In response to the attack, the extremists, who want to establish an Islamic state, have killed key clan leaders in an apparent effort to erode popular support.
First responders in Somalia, which has one of the poorest health systems in the world due to decades of violence, are overburdened due to the attack.
Frantic family members searched body bags and plastic sheets at hospitals and other locations for their loved ones.
It was unclear how explosives-laden cars once more managed to reach the prominent spot in Mogadishu, a city with checkpoints and constantly on guard for attacks.
Al-Shabab has been identified by the United States as one of the al-deadliest Qaida organizations and has recently been the target of numerous airstrikes.
Following their withdrawal under President Donald Trump, hundreds of U.S. military personnel have returned to the nation.
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