translated from Spanish: 76 dead bomb dead in Somalia capital

Mogadishu.- A car bomb exploded next to a security hold in Somalia’s capital on Saturday morning, killing at least 76 people, a medical official said. It was one of the worst attacks in recent times in Mogadishu.Abdiqadir Abdirahman, director of the Aamin ambulance service, said more than 50 people were injured. Government spokesman Ismail lMukhtar said the casualty balance was likely to increase. Two Turkish citizens and many university students were among the dead, said Mayor Omar Mohamud Mohamed. Among the wounded were several children. Captain Mohamed Hussein said the explosion was directed at a tax collection center and occurred during the morning rush hour in Mogadishu.A column of black smoke rose from the city. There was no immediate vindication of the attack. The Islamist group al-Shabab, linked to the al-Qaida network, often launches similar attacks. The group was expelled from the capital several years ago, but continues to attack vital targets as retainers and hotels in the city. The attack raises new concerns about the ability of Somali government forces to take responsibility for security in the country at the hands of a Union mission Africana.Al-Shabab was accused of a devastating attack with a truck bomb October 2017 that killed more than 500 people. The group never claimed responsibility for that attack, which caused enormous public outrage. Some analysts said al-Shabab did not dare claim the attack as its strategy of trying to change public opinion had failed. The attack raises new concerns about the ability of Somali government forces to take responsibility for security in the country at the hands of a Africana.Al-Shabab Union mission, the target of growing US airstrikes since President Donald Trump took office, he controls parts of southern and central Somalia. It is funded by a system of “taxes” that experts describe as extortion to businesses and travelers that generates millions of dollars a year.



Original source in Spanish