Al Shabaab Suicide Attack On UN Office In Somali Capital Leaves 16 Dead
https://nigeriaafrica1.blogspot.com/2013/06/al-shabaab-suicide-attack-on-un-office.html
At least 16 people, including three foreigners, have been killed in an attack on a United Nations office in the Somali capital Mogadishu.
The Al Qaeda-linked group Al Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack, in which a suicide bomber first blew up a car at the entrance to the compound near the city's heavily fortified airport, with armed attackers then entering the compound.
Three foreigners, including two South Africans in the UN compound, died in the attack along with a Somali UN worker, two Somali security guards and three civilians in the surrounding streets, officials said.
It is the first time the UN has been targeted since it relaunched its mission in Somalia.
UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon described the attack as "despicable".
Somalia's president Hassan Sheikh Mohammed called the attack "cowardly" while describing Al Shabaab as a "disgrace to Somalia".
Government officials said seven Shabaab fighters took part in the attack, all of whom either detonated suicide vests or were shot dead.
Security warnings of an attack have been in place for weeks, and UN staff regularly practise sheltering in a secure bunker inside the central Mogadishu compound.
"Our commandos attacked the UN compound .... We set off an explosion and entered," a senior Shabaab official said, saying they had wanted to attack "the infidel forces".
Somali and African Union troops later moved into the complex - despite the Islamists battling back with heavy gunfire - to end the 90-minute siege.
"Somali soldiers along with African Union forces stormed the compound and killed the attackers," Somali police official Abdulahi Osman said.
The UN Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) said the compound - home to UN humanitarian agencies - had come under "complex attack", and UN staff elsewhere in the city were temporarily pulled back to the secure airport zone.
The compound - including both residential and office areas - is a short distance from the airport zone, the base of the African Union troops, but is guarded by its own security officers.
Somalia's capital has been hit by a series of attacks including suicide and car bombings, mortar attacks and shootings, although in recent weeks the city has been relatively calm.
Islamist Shabaab militants used to control most of the seaside capital until they abandoned fixed positions in August 2011, but the insurgents have since carried out a string of attacks against the UN-backed government.
Three foreigners, including two South Africans in the UN compound, died in the attack along with a Somali UN worker, two Somali security guards and three civilians in the surrounding streets, officials said.
It is the first time the UN has been targeted since it relaunched its mission in Somalia.
UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon described the attack as "despicable".
Somalia's president Hassan Sheikh Mohammed called the attack "cowardly" while describing Al Shabaab as a "disgrace to Somalia".
Government officials said seven Shabaab fighters took part in the attack, all of whom either detonated suicide vests or were shot dead.
Security warnings of an attack have been in place for weeks, and UN staff regularly practise sheltering in a secure bunker inside the central Mogadishu compound.
"Our commandos attacked the UN compound .... We set off an explosion and entered," a senior Shabaab official said, saying they had wanted to attack "the infidel forces".
Somali and African Union troops later moved into the complex - despite the Islamists battling back with heavy gunfire - to end the 90-minute siege.
"Somali soldiers along with African Union forces stormed the compound and killed the attackers," Somali police official Abdulahi Osman said.
The UN Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) said the compound - home to UN humanitarian agencies - had come under "complex attack", and UN staff elsewhere in the city were temporarily pulled back to the secure airport zone.
The compound - including both residential and office areas - is a short distance from the airport zone, the base of the African Union troops, but is guarded by its own security officers.
Somalia's capital has been hit by a series of attacks including suicide and car bombings, mortar attacks and shootings, although in recent weeks the city has been relatively calm.
Islamist Shabaab militants used to control most of the seaside capital until they abandoned fixed positions in August 2011, but the insurgents have since carried out a string of attacks against the UN-backed government.
