Ekeomah Atuonwu
According to Somali police, at least four people were killed on Wednesday by a suicide bomber who targeted a checkpoint near the airport in the capital, Mogadishu.
“I saw four bodies at the scene. Two of them were government soldiers who died immediately after the attack,” said Ali Hassan, a police officer.
According to witness Hamdi Nur, a number of injured people were taken away in an ambulance. There was no information on the other victims.
The explosion occurred as presidential candidates arrived at the heavily fortified airport area to address lawmakers ahead of the presidential election on Sunday.
The attack, which destroyed a number of small businesses along the street, was claimed by Somalia’s Islamic extremist group al-Shabab.
Al-Shabab opposes Somalia’s federal government and frequently stages lethal attacks in Mogadishu and elsewhere in the Horn of Africa nation.
