https://international.la-croix.com/world/somalia-nine-dead-in-a-car-bomb-attack-in-mogadishu
Nine people were killed and 20 others injured in the Somali capital of Mogadishu when a car bomb exploded in front of a crowded café filled with patrons watching the Euro 2024 final Sunday night, security sources said July 15.
“A vehicle loaded with explosives is suspected to have caused the devastating explosion at the restaurant. We have confirmed that at least nine civilians were killed and 20 others injured in the explosion,” Mohamed Yusuf, an official with the national security agency, told AFP. An earlier report indicated five deaths.
Images posted online show a huge fireball and plumes of smoke rising into the night sky as the explosion ravaged the popular downtown establishment.
“Total War” against the Jihadists
“A car bomb exploded this evening in front of the Top Coffee restaurant...placed by Kharijite terrorists,” reported SONNA, using the term authorities use to refer to the radical Islamist group, Al-Shabaab.
An AFP journalist observed firefighters, police, and ambulances dispatched to the scene of the explosion. Police cordoned off the area, which is located near the presidential palace complex and was busy at the time of the blast.
Al-Shabaab, a jihadist group linked to Al-Qaeda, has carried out numerous bombings and other attacks in Mogadishu and various regions of the troubled country.
On Saturday, five detainees considered fighters of the radical Islamist group were killed in a shootout during an escape attempt from Mogadishu's main prison. Three guards were killed, and 18 were injured, according to prison authorities.
Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has promised a “total” war against the jihadists. The army has joined forces with local clan militias in a military campaign supported by an African Union force and U.S. airstrikes. Nevertheless, the offensive has faced setbacks, with Al-Shabaab claiming to have captured numerous localities in the country's center by early 2024.
Frequent attacks in Kenya and Somalia
Although driven out of the capital by African Union (AU) forces in 2011, Al-Shabaab remains highly active in rural areas of Somalia. The group has repeatedly attacked political, security, and civilian targets, primarily in Somalia but also in neighboring countries, including Kenya.
In a resolution, the UN Security Council has planned to withdraw all AU peacekeeping mission personnel from Somalia by December 31, 2024, so that security will be solely the responsibility of the Somali army and law enforcement.
Some 4,000 soldiers out of the 13,500-strong mission were set to leave by the end of June. In response to Somalia's request to slow troop withdrawal, the AU Peace and Security Council stated it “strongly supports (...) a gradual approach.”
Nine people were killed and 20 others injured in the Somali capital of Mogadishu when a car bomb exploded in front of a crowded café filled with patrons watching the Euro 2024 final Sunday night, security sources said July 15.
“A vehicle loaded with explosives is suspected to have caused the devastating explosion at the restaurant. We have confirmed that at least nine civilians were killed and 20 others injured in the explosion,” Mohamed Yusuf, an official with the national security agency, told AFP. An earlier report indicated five deaths.
Images posted online show a huge fireball and plumes of smoke rising into the night sky as the explosion ravaged the popular downtown establishment.
“Total War” against the Jihadists
“A car bomb exploded this evening in front of the Top Coffee restaurant...placed by Kharijite terrorists,” reported SONNA, using the term authorities use to refer to the radical Islamist group, Al-Shabaab.
An AFP journalist observed firefighters, police, and ambulances dispatched to the scene of the explosion. Police cordoned off the area, which is located near the presidential palace complex and was busy at the time of the blast.
Al-Shabaab, a jihadist group linked to Al-Qaeda, has carried out numerous bombings and other attacks in Mogadishu and various regions of the troubled country.
On Saturday, five detainees considered fighters of the radical Islamist group were killed in a shootout during an escape attempt from Mogadishu's main prison. Three guards were killed, and 18 were injured, according to prison authorities.
Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has promised a “total” war against the jihadists. The army has joined forces with local clan militias in a military campaign supported by an African Union force and U.S. airstrikes. Nevertheless, the offensive has faced setbacks, with Al-Shabaab claiming to have captured numerous localities in the country's center by early 2024.
Frequent attacks in Kenya and Somalia
Although driven out of the capital by African Union (AU) forces in 2011, Al-Shabaab remains highly active in rural areas of Somalia. The group has repeatedly attacked political, security, and civilian targets, primarily in Somalia but also in neighboring countries, including Kenya.
In a resolution, the UN Security Council has planned to withdraw all AU peacekeeping mission personnel from Somalia by December 31, 2024, so that security will be solely the responsibility of the Somali army and law enforcement.
Some 4,000 soldiers out of the 13,500-strong mission were set to leave by the end of June. In response to Somalia's request to slow troop withdrawal, the AU Peace and Security Council stated it “strongly supports (...) a gradual approach.”
