Families seek those missing from bomb blast in Somalia
MOGADISHU, Somalia — Anguished families scoured Somalia’s capital Tuesday in search of scores still missing from Saturday’s bomb blast that killed more than 300 people.
Sitting outside a hospital mortuary, Hodan Ali quietly looked for her missing brother by showing people his photo on her mobile phone.
Fifty-year-old taxi driver Abdiqadir Ali was last seen Saturday on his way to a hotel to pick up a client just before the massive explosion on a busy street.
Ali said she had visited most of Mogadishu’s hospitals, but neither she nor other family members found any sign of him.
“I am about to give up,” she said in a soft voice, tears running over her veil.
Across Mogadishu, Somalia’s flag flew at half-mast, marking three days of national mourning.
The death toll of 302 is expected to rise. Nearly 70 people were missing, based on accounts from relatives, said police Capt. Mohamed Hussein.
“My son has gone missing since the day of the attack. I would be very lucky if I had a portion of his body,” Abdulkadir Mohamud said, breaking down in tears. “I do not have even his flesh.”
With nearly 400 people wounded, international aid arrived to help overwhelmed hospitals.
A United States military plane landed in Mogadishu with medical and humanitarian aid supplies. Dozens of critically injured have been airlifted to Turkey for treatment. A medical team from Djibouti arrived for more evacuations, and neighboring Kenya said it would evacuate 31 people and deliver 11 tons of medical supplies.
Somalia’s government has blamed the attack on the al-shabab extremist group, which has not commented.
Al-shabab has waged war in Somalia for more than a decade, often targeting high-profile areas of the capital. Earlier this year, it vowed to step up attacks after both the Trump administration and Somalia’s recently elected Somali-american president, Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, announced new military efforts.