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MOGADISHU,

Two people were killed and five wounded on Tuesday when a car packed with explosives was detonated near the ministry of petroleum in the Somali capital, a security official said.

Mohamed Abdullahi Tulah, a regional security official, said the vehicle was parked at a petrol station in front of the ministry's offices in Mogadishu when it was detonated.

"It was hidden inside the petrol station parking where it went off, two civilians were killed and five others wounded in the blast," he told a press conference.

A witness, Dahir Adan, said one of those killed was a woman who was selling tea close to the blast scene.

"The blast was very heavy but luckily it did not cause fire destroying the petrol station and the casualty (toll) was minimal," he added.

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No group claimed responsibility.

Al-Shabaab jihadists seeking to topple the internationally-backed government regularly carry out attacks in the Somali capital. </s> At least two people were killed and five wounded on Tuesday in a suicide car bomb attack near the ministry of petroleum in the Somali capital, Mogadishu.

A security official, Mohamed Abdullahi Tulah, said the car loaded with explosives was parked at a gas station near the Ministry.

Witnesses say one of the victims killed is a woman who sold tea near the site.

Though there was no immediate claim of responsibility for Tuesday’s attack, Al Shabaab Islamists, have a history of conducting such bombings in the Somali capital.

Chased out of Mogadishu in 2011, the Shebab then lost most of their strongholds.

They have been fighting to to topple the western backed government of Somalia for over a decade. </s> Story highlights Four people are killed and five injured in blast in Mogadishu, Somalia

Car bomb explodes near prison where militant Al-Shabaab suspects are questioned

Mogadishu, Somalia (CNN) The Islamist militant group Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for a car bombing that killed four people Saturday in the Somali capital.

A vehicle packed with explosives detonated near a prison run by the Somali National Intelligence and Security Agency in Mogadishu, Col. Hamza Ali, a senior police officer, told CNN. The car had been parked at the Blue Sky restaurant near Godka Jili'ow prison, a heavily protected facility where Al-Shabaab suspects are questioned.

Five people were injured in the attack, Ali said.

A statement posted on a pro-Al-Shabaab website said the car bomb had targeted a Somali intelligence officer at the restaurant.

Al-Shabaab is a Somali extremist group that seeks to turn the country into a fundamentalist Islamic state. It has carried out repeated attacks against Somalia's government and military targets. </s> MOGADISHU - Two people were killed and five wounded on Tuesday when a car packed with explosives was detonated near the ministry of petroleum in the Somali capital, a security official said.

Mohamed Abdullahi Tulah, a regional security official, said the vehicle was parked at a petrol station in front of the ministry's offices in Mogadishu when it was detonated.

“It was hidden inside the petrol station parking where it went off, two civilians were killed, and five others wounded in the blast,” he told a press conference.

A witness, Dahir Adan, said one of those killed was a woman who was selling tea close to the blast scene.

“The blast was very heavy but luckily it did not cause fire destroying the petrol station and the casualty (toll) was minimal,” he added.

Al-Shabaab jihadists seeking to topple the internationally-backed government regularly carry out attacks in the Somali capital.

The al-Qaeda affiliated group was largely driven out of Mogadishu in 2011 and has lost many of its strongholds. But it retains control of large rural swathes of the country and continues to wage a guerrilla war against the authorities. </s> A car bomb exploded near a checkpoint in Somalia capital Mogadishu on Wednesday, killing at least two people and wounding 12 others, officials said.

The bombing was claimed by Islamist militant group Al-Shabaab, which said in a statement it had targeted a convoy escorting officials and lawmakers heading to the presidential palace.

"A car bomb blast struck at a checkpoint near Daljirka, there are some casualties including members of the security forces," said security official Abdukadir Ahmed after the attack in the south of the city.

Abdikadir Abdirahman, director of Aamin ambulance service told AFP two people were killed and twelve others wounded in the blast. </s> At least four people were killed and 12 others injured in a in Somalia's capital on Wednesday, the police said.

A told that the car filled with explosives went off as the officials were checking vehicles in Mogadishu's district, causing deaths and

"The blast happened in a traffic area at a police checkpoint. So far, we can confirm four people died in the explosion. We are establishing more details on the incident," the said.

A Somali military and her bodyguards were among the dead, while a lawmaker was among those injured in the blast, the report said.

Abdulkadir Abdirahman Adan, of Mogadishu's free ambulance service Aamin Ambulance, said they took 12 injured people from the scene.

The blast came barely four days after a car laden with explosives went off at El-Gabta junction in Mogadishu's district leaving no casualties.

Al Qaeda-allied group al-Shabab, which is fighting to overthrow the government, claimed responsibility of the latest attack. </s> Nov 7 At least one person was killed on Wednesday when a car laden with explosives detonated in the car park of the country's parliament building in the capital Mogadishu, police said.

The explosion went off while the country's new legislators were holding a session inside.

General Mohamed Abdulle told Reuters the car full of explosives was parked among those owned by Somali parliamentarians, and a Somali soldier was killed in the blast.

"It exploded and one military soldier died. There are no other casualties but there is damage to the cars," he said.

It was not immediately clear who was behind the attack, though Mogadishu has been frequently targeted by Islamist militant group al Shabaab, who are fighting Somali government forces and African Union soldiers across the country.

Since al Shabaab withdrew from the capital in August last year, it has increasingly turned to suicide bombers and grenade attacks to target government and African Union positions.

Two suicide bombers attacked a restaurant in the Somali capital on Saturday, killing a security guard who stopped them entering the building.

It was not clear who was behind the bombings but Al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab insurgents have conducted similar previous attacks and remain a serious security challenge even after being forced out of their strongholds. (Writing by Drazen Jorgic; Editing by James Macharia) </s> At least four people were killed on Tuesday when a car bomb exploded at a checkpoint less than a kilometre away from the presidential compound in Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu, police said. Security officials at the scene told media the checkpoint was rammed by a car bomb driven by a suicide attacker, causing a blast outside a theatre. “At least four people, including government soldiers and civilians, died in the blast. Several others were injured,” said Mohamed Hussein, a police officer.

“Casualty numbers may rise. There were pedestrians along the street at the time of the explosion,” he told Reuters. The theatre is about 300 metres away from the heavily fortified compound known as Villa Somalia, which also houses other government agencies. It was not immediately clear who was responsible for the explosion. In the past, al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab has taken responsibility for blasts and gun attacks in the capital.

Al Shabaab has been able to carry out deadly bombings despite losing most of its territory to African Union peacekeepers supporting the Somali government. The group’s insurgency aims to drive out the peacekeepers, topple Somalia’s western-backed government and impose its strict version of Islam on the Horn of Africa state. Somalia swore in a new leader last month. Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed has promised al Shabaab’s fighters “a good life” if they surrender.

For all the latest World News, download Indian Express App now </s> Extremist group Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for a deadly explosion that police say killed 10 people Tuesday afternoon in Mogadishu, Somalia.

At least 15 people were injured in the bomb explosion at a busy security checkpoint in the country’s capital, according to Somali federal police Maj. Ahmed Ibrahim. The blast was caused by an explosive-laden vehicle about 150 meters from the entrance of Villa Somalia, the presidential palace in Mogadishu, Ibrahim said.

The attack occurred hours after Somalia Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khayre appointed his new Cabinet.

The dead include a soldier who attempted to fend off the car bomb, and several women selling Khat on the roadside, said Abdifitah Omar Halane, a spokesman for the Mogadishu mayor.

Somali security forces sealed off the area, where a thick column of white smoke rose into sky. Local ambulances rushed in and carried away wounded to hospitals in Mogadishu.

Al-Shabaab, which claimed responsibility for the attack through its Radio Andalus, announced 20 had been killed, though the terror group is known to exaggerate the death totals of its attacks.

Mogadishu is subject to frequent attacks as Al-Shabaab, an al Qaeda-linked terror group, seeks to turn the country into a fundamentalist Islamic state.

This is the second car bomb attack the group has claimed responsibility for this month, and the fourth since the beginning of the year. On March 13, four people were killed in two attacks, while a February car bomb left 30 dead and a January explosion killed 21.
Two people were killed and five others were injured in a car bombing near the Somali Petroleum Ministry and the responsibility was claimed by Al-Shabaab.