6 dead, 16 others wounded in a car bombing in Mogadishu

Rescuers carry a dead body at the scene of explosion in Mogadishu where six people were killed and scores wounded. (Courtesy)

MOGADISHU—A car bomb has on Monday killed at least six people and injured sixteen others at a district headquarters in Somali’s capital, Mogadishu.

Al Shabaab has claimed responsibility for the attack that left the office in Hodan district in ruins and sent up huge clouds of smoke.

“We completely destroyed the district headquarter office. There are many casualties. We shall give details later,” Abdiasis Abu Musab, Al Shabaab’s military operation spokesman, said.

Police officer Ibrahim Mohamed noted that there was a huge blast after a suicide attacker crashed his vehicle into the district headquarters.

“The blast was huge and the initial information we are getting indicates it was a car loaded with explosives that targeted the Hodan district headquarters,” said Mohamed.

“We have carried six dead people and  sixteen others injured. The death toll may rise,” Abdikadir Abdirahman, director of Amin Ambulance service, said.

A destroyed car at the scene of the explosion in Hodan district, Mogadishu, Somalia. (Courtesy)

It is the second time the group has targeted a local district headquarters in Mogadishu this month.

On September 2, a suicide car bomb destroyed the headquarters of the neighboring Howlwadaag  district, killing six people.

Somalia has witnessed dramatic amounts of violence and suffered multiple terrorist attacks since 1991, with dozens of people dying and dozens injured almost every month due to the low level of security in the country.

On Saturday, leaders of Somalia’s federal member states suspended all working relationships with the central government.

The state leaders blamed the government in Mogadishu for “interfering” in regional issues, instead of managing the country’ security and fighting against Al Shabaab.