14 killed, 30 injured in Mogadishu car bombing

Terrorist attack targeted soldiers and civilians near a busy intersection

MOGADISHU: t least 14 people were killed on Sunday when a car packed with explosives blew up near a busy intersection in Mogadishu.

''The area was a busy intersection alongside the road and there were many civilians when the blast occurred,''Mohamed Jilibey, a local security guard explicated.

The deadly attack is the first big attack in the Somali capital since the election of President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed.

Last week, notwithstanding, several mortar blasts marked the official handover of power that was claimed by the militant group known as Al-Shabaab

"The death toll is very high, more than 10 people were confirmed dead and others are wounded," said Dahir Ahmed, another official.



Witnesses said the bombing targeted an intersection in southern Mogadishu's Madina district where soldiers, civilians and traders were present.

Sumayo Moalim, another eyewitness, said that shoppers and security forces were present at the time of the blast which led to a large number of civilian casualties.

The terror attack punctuates the challenge faced by the newly elected president who has inherited an administration with limited control over Somali territory due to the presence of Al Shabaab.

African Union troops drove militants belonging to the terrorist outfit from the capital city in August 2011, however, the group enjoy a stronghold in the rural areas.