The US condemned the terrorist attack in Somalia’s capital Mogadishu. White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan in an official statement on Sunday said, “The United States strongly condemns tragic terrorist attack in Mogadishu.”
He further added, “and in particular its heinous targeting of the Somali Ministry of Education and first responders. We send our deepest condolences to the Somali people and to all those who lost loved ones or were injured by these unconscionable attacks against innocent civilians. The United States remains committed to supporting the Federal Government of Somalia in its fight to prevent such callous terrorist acts.”
Mogadishu’s K5 intersection remains normally busy with people buying and selling everyday items like from food, clothing and water to foreign currency and khat, a mild narcotic leaf. However, on Sunday, it was a silent street where emergency workers cleaned blood from the streets and buildings.
President warns of more casualties
President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said that the attack, wherein two car bombs blasted at Somalia’s education ministry next to a busy market, killed an estimated 100 people and wounded approximately 300 more. He also warned that the death toll could be more, saying that some of the injured were in a serious condition.
Since a truck bomb exploded at the same junction in October 2017, killing more than 500 people, Saturday’s bombing was the deadliest. The president accused the Islamist al Qaeda-linked group al Shabaab even when no one claimed responsibility for the attack till now.
The first blast occurred in the education ministry at around 2 p.m. The second occurred while ambulances arrived and people gathered to help the victims.
The president visited the blast site. After his visit he said, “Our people who were massacred … included mothers with their children in their arms, fathers who had medical conditions, students who were sent to study, businessmen who were struggling with the lives of their families.”
Attacks are often carried out in Mogadishu and other locations by Al Shabaab terrorists, who aim to overthrow the government and impose their own rule based on an extreme interpretation of Islamic law. However, the group normally abstains from taking credit for attacks that leave a significant number of victims.
