Deadly blast hits Somali capital

AL Jazeera English Africa

At least two killed as car bomb goes off near foreign ministry building during visit by Kenyan ministers. Last Modified: 18 Oct 2011 15:01

A lorry bomb killed more than 70 in Mogadishu earlier this month in one of the deadliest attacks in recent months [EPA] At least two people have been killed and 15 others injured in a car-bomb blast near the Somali foreign ministry building in the capital, Mogadishu. The attack occurred on Tuesday while Kenya's defence minister, Yusuf Haji, and foreign minister, Moses Wetangula, were meeting Somali officials in the offices of the foreign ministry. "There was heavy explosion near the foreign affairs ministry building and initial reports are indicating a car laden with explosives detonated. We are still investigating the incident," Mohamed Adan, a Somali government official said, on Tuesday. "It was a car bomb that exploded but we don't know what it was targeting," Ali Abdi Rahman, a witness, told the AFP news agency. Witnesses said they saw the dead bodies of two people but could not identify whether they were civilians. One witness, Tohow Abdi, said he saw body parts torn off by the blast. Ambulances evacuated the wounded and government forces fired in the air to disperse a crowd of onlookers. The blast came two days after Kenya declared war on al-Shabab, blamed for a spate of recent abductions, and sent troops across the borders to pursue fighters of the group inside Somali territory. Al-Shabab has threatened to hit Kenyan targets in retaliation. Tuesday's attack was the second in the capital this month. A suicide lorry bomb struck a compound housing several government ministries in Mogadishu on October 4, killing more than 70 people.

Source: Agencies

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