More than ten people were killed on Friday (March 5th) when a vehicle bomb exploded against a popular restaurant in the Somali capital Mogadishu, police said.
The attack was claimed by the Islamists Shebab.
According to police spokesman Sadick Dudishe, the attack on the restaurant was carried out with a "rickshaw" (motorized tricycle), equipped with a cargo tray loaded with explosives.
"The terrorists (...) targeted a restaurant frequented by civilians. Ten people were killed and 30 others were injured," he told reporters.
A security official and a medical source did not rule out that the toll could be higher.
>> See also: "Somalia is looking for unification"
"The explosion was very strong and caused significant destruction and caused civilian casualties. Operations are still ongoing to establish the exact death toll," said security official Mohamed Osman, also reporting a initial death toll of 10.
"There could be more casualties, but it's hard to say at the moment," he added.
The boss of an ambulance service, for his part, indicated that the death of 20 people had been confirmed.
"Our teams on the ground have confirmed the deaths of 20 people, 30 others were injured," said the director of the Amin ambulance service in Mogadishu, Abdikadir Abdirahman.
Recurring attacks
Somali Islamists Shebab, who regularly carry out attacks in the Somali capital, claimed responsibility for the attack.
The Shebabs have led a rebellion for years to overthrow the fragile Somali government, supported at arm's length by the international community.
They were driven out of Mogadishu in 2011 by the African Union (AU) force, Amisom, but still control large portions of Somalia, which has fallen into chaos since 1991.
With AFP
The summary of the week
France 24 invites you to come back to the news that marked the week
I subscribe
Take international news everywhere with you!
Download the France 24 application
google-play-badge_FR