137 killed in Somalia bombing
MOGADISHU: The death toll from a massive weekend truck bomb in a busy shopping district here surged to at least 137, police said yesterday, warning it could rise after one of the worst-ever attacks to hit war-torn Somalia.
The figure was a huge jump from an initial police estimate of 20 dead in the hours after the deadly explosion ripped through the capital on Saturday, causing carnage and devastation.
“We are getting different numbers of casualty from medical centres, but we have confirmed 137 (dead), most of them burnt beyond recognition,” said police official Ibrahim Mohamed.
“The death toll could be higher because there are more than 300 wounded, some seriously,” he said, describing it as “the deadliest attack ever”.
Rescuers worked through the night to try to pull bodies from the rubble after the truck bomb exploded outside of the Safari Hotel on a busy road junction, levelling buildings and leaving many vehicles in flames.
There has been no claim of responsibility, but the Shabaab, a militant group aligned with alQaeda, had carried out dozens of suicide bombings in its bid to overthrow the government.
The explosion occurred at a junction in Hodan, a bustling commercial district.
Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed Abdulrahman alThani wrote on Twitter that the country’s embassy had been badly damaged in the blast and one of its top officials wounded.
The National Union of Somali Journalists said a freelance cameraman, Ali Nur Siyaad, had been killed and four journalists were wounded. AFP