On Tuesday, Al-Shabaab militants carried out a bomb attack targeting the motorcade of Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud in Mogadishu, as his convoy was traveling towards the airport.
After the attack, senior military and government sources told Reuters that President Mohamud was safe. Zakariye Hussein, the president’s counselor, wrote on X that the president was “good and well on his way to the frontlines.”
Soldiers and locals alike attested to the fact that the president’s convoy was struck. Four individuals were slain close to the presidential palace, according to a journalist on the scene.
The attack happened close to the presidential palace, at the intersection of Eel and Gaab.
President Mohamud was en route to the airport to fly to Adan Yabal district in the Middle Shabelle region of Hirshabelle State, intending to boost the morale of troops fighting the militants.
“No amount of cowardly action, boosted by misinformation, can threaten this nation,” Mr. Hussein wrote in his X post.
While Al Shabaab frequently conducts attacks in Somalia as part of its long-running campaign to overthrow the government, Tuesday’s incident marks the first direct targeting of Mr. Mohamud since 2014, during his first term, when the group bombed a hotel where he was speaking.
Hours after Tuesday’s attack, state media displayed images of the President in Adan Yabal, where government forces are engaged in a three-week-old al Shabaab offensive. He was accompanied by top military commanders.
Related Articles
Suspected Al Shabaab Militants Kidnap 5 Chiefs In Kenya
Al-Shabaab Attacks Hotel In Somalia Targeting Gov’t Officials
Recent Al Shabaab Activity in Somalia and Kenya
• Hotel Attack (Last week Tuesday): Gunmen attacked a hotel in a central Somali town, targeting local elders and government officials. Witnesses reported the attackers besieged the hotel. A federal lawmaker from Beledweyne reported at least four deaths. Government forces subsequently engaged the al Shabaab fighters. The group claimed responsibility, stating they killed over ten people.
• Kenyan Kidnapping (February 3): Suspected Al Shabaab militants reportedly kidnapped at least five chiefs in Mandera County, Northern Kenya. The officers were en route to Elwak town for identification card screening when they were ambushed.
Source: The EastAfrican
