Two large explosions followed by gunfire were heard on Saturday near the presidential palace in Somalia’s capital.
The midday blasts came a week after a similar attack on the interior ministry compound in Mogadishu killed at least nine people.
Police Captain Mohamed Hussein told The Associated Press that a car bomb detonated near a checkpoint close to the presidential palace Saturday after security forces engaged with gunmen.
A second car bomb blast occurred in the same area shortly afterward.
The Somalia-based al-Shabab extremist group, an arm of al-Qaida, often targets high-profile places in the capital and claimed responsibility for the attack a week ago.
The group was blamed for the October truck bombing in Mogadishu that killed more than 500 people in the deadliest attack in the country’s history.
The United States under the Trump administration has stepped up military efforts in Somalia, including dozens of drone strikes, against al-Shabab and a small presence of fighters linked to the Islamic State group.
At least two US military personnel have been killed.
The US military and others in the international community have expressed concern about the plan for Somalia’s security forces to take over the country’s security from a multinational African Union force over the next few years, saying the local troops are not yet ready.
Source: AP
