Press Release
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Nairobi - Today, a suicide car bomb killed at least 4 civilians and injured 15 near a building housing the Foreign Affairs Ministry. Among the dead were a street vendor and a pedestrian. The AU Mission in Somalia strongly condemns this cowardly act and expresses its horror at the deliberate targeting of Somali civilians by al Qaeda-linked terrorist insurgents, and vowed to continue doing all it can to protect the people of Mogadishu.
Ambassador Boubacar Diarra, the Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission on Somalia, said: "We abhor this indiscriminate terror attack in Mogadishu and mourn the needless loss of life. We have sent medical teams to the scene to assist the injured. At this difficult time our thoughts are with the wounded and with the families of those killed. It is now clear that the extremists are deliberately targeting civilians. AMISOM expresses its continued solidarity with the Transitional Federal Government and our forces remain committed to improving security in the capital."
Last week, the extremists were driven out from their last stronghold in the city by the Somali National Army with the support of AMISOM troops. AMISOM has approximately 9000 troops in the Somali capital and is continually calling for additional troops, already authorized by the UN Security Council, and the strengthening of Somali forces so as to consolidate the gains in Mogadishu and secure the city .