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Somali security forces after the recent attack in Mogadishu
Photo: HASSAN ALI ELMI / AFP
More than ten people were killed in a suicide attack by the Islamist Al-Shabaab militia and an exchange of fire that followed in the Somali capital Mogadishu.
The attack occurred near the mayor's office and several buildings were damaged, a police spokesman said on Sunday.
With this attack, the number of dead as a result of terrorist attacks or fighting rises to more than 230 - and that within a week.
The overview:
On January 15, eight people were killed in a bomb attack by al-Shabaab militia in the center of the country.
On January 17, at least 35 people died as a result of an attack on a military base.
On January 19, at least 49 Islamist fighters were killed by state forces.
On January 20, more than 100 people died in an al-Shabaab attack.
On January 21, 30 al-Shabaab militants were killed.
During the suicide attack on Sunday, a vehicle laden with explosives apparently blew up a wall of a shopping center next to the administrative headquarters.
"All six attackers are dead, five of them died during the exchange of fire with the security forces and one blew himself up," the police spokesman said.
There were also six deaths among civilians, he added.
After a four-hour siege, the situation returned to normal.
According to the police, all employees in the mayor's office were brought to safety.
The Islamist Shabaab militia, which is allied with the extremist network al-Qaeda, claimed responsibility for the attack and stated in its communication channels that its fighters entered the "targeted building" after killing the security personnel.
The militia has been fighting the government of Somalia, which is supported by the international community, since 2007.
The Shabaab fighters were driven out of the capital Mogadishu and the other big cities more than ten years ago.
However, they continue to dominate large rural areas in the center and south of the East African country and repeatedly carry out attacks, including in Mogadishu.
dop/AFP
