Eight killed in Mogadishu bombing

At least eight people have been killed and 23 wounded after a large explosion hit the Somali capital Mogadishu. The blast in the early hours of Thursday occurred near the K4 junction in the heart of the city and triggered a plume of smoke.

Al-Shabaab media reported that the group is responsible for the explosion, claiming it was a suicide car bomb which targeted a convoy escorting “white officers” travelling from General Gordon training camp. In the meantime, Somali police said the explosion targeted a local security firm guarding a U.N. convoy reportedly travelling from Gordon training camp to Halane base camp. Security forces arrived at the scene immediately after the incident and the area of the explosion has been cordoned off.

Al Shabaab has been fighting Somalia’s central government for years to establish its own rule based on its strict interpretation of Islam’s sharia law. The group frequently carries out bombings and gun assaults in Somalia and elsewhere in its war against the Somalia military and the African Union-mandated AMISOM force that helps defend the central government.