Harun Maruf Hassan
Thursday, December 22, 2016
Somali government officials say two civilians and a government solider were killed after an explosion near one of Mogadishu’s busiest junctions known as Black Sea, late Thursday.
Spokesman for the Mogadishu administration Abdifatah Omar Halane told VOA Somali that the explosion was the result of an Improvised Explosive Devise “IED” which was detonated near a garage where security forces are based.
“The enemy of Somali people have caused this tragedy,” Halane said.
He said the security forces were alert and were searching the area for possible explosives when it was detonated.
Halane confirmed that the same garage has been the target of several grenade attacks recently since the national security forces took it over in late November.
The government deployed the security forces in the garage after investigations revealed that other Al-Shabab attacks were allegedly planned there.
“This is where they readied the truck which was detonated at the vegetable market, that is when the security forces took over the garage,” Halane said.
The truck explosion on the vegetable market occurred on November 26 killing 20 people almost all of them civilians.
Meanwhile, the African Union Mission in Somalia known as AMISOM says one of their soldiers “deserted” his defensive position at Qoryoley town, 150km south Mogadishu, Wednesday.
“Once it as realized he was missing a search party traced his footsteps for about 3km from the camp before disappearing in the thickets,” AMISOM said in a message on twitter.
AMISOM said it will continue to search to find the missing soldier.
The base where the soldier reportedly deserted is run by Ugandan forces. The Al-Shabab militant group claimed it captured the soldier in a “special operation”.
Al-Shabab is already holding captive at least one Ugandan soldier captured following an attack on AU military base in Jannaale on September 1, 2015. Nineteen UPDF soldiers were killed in the same attack.