IAt least 100 people were killed and 300 injured when two car bombs exploded in front of the Ministry of Education in the Somali capital Mogadishu on Saturday. The country’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said in a statement that the victims included women, children and students.
The first blast hit the Ministry of Education near a busy intersection in Mogadishu, the second car bomb exploded as ambulances arrived and people gathered to help the victims. The explosions were so powerful that the blast shattered surrounding windows. The President blamed the radical Islamic group Al-Shabaab for the attack, which has not yet claimed responsibility for the incident. According to Mohamud, the number of victims could increase. He instructed the government to immediately provide medical aid to those who were injured, some of them seriously.
Somalia has been suffering from unrest and insecurity for years. In 1991, several militias joined forces to overthrow dictator Siad Barre, but then fought each other. Al-Shabaab is fighting the government, which is supported by the United Nations (UN) and African Union (AU) soldiers, and wants to establish an Islamist regime. The militia has carried out multiple attacks not only in Somalia, but also in Kenya and Uganda. Almost 600 people were killed in Mogadishu in October 2017, the worst attack to date. At that time, a vehicle loaded with explosives exploded near a tanker truck.
