Mogadishu. At least 37 people were killed and dozens injured in an attack by the Islamist group Al Shabab on a beach in Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia, on Friday, according to a new toll from authorities on Saturday.
“The total number of deaths we have confirmed is 37,” Health Minister Ali Haji Adam said in a press release. The previous death toll, reported by the police, was 32.
Eleven people are in intensive care, 64 others remain hospitalized with injuries, while 137 with minor injuries have been discharged after being treated, the minister added.
According to police and witnesses, one man blew himself up first, then several others began shooting at people on the Lido beach, which is popular with businessmen and government officials.
This exclusive neighbourhood, full of hotels and restaurants, has already been the target of attacks in the past.
Some survivors described how, after the explosion, gunmen stormed the beach with the intention of “killing as many as they could.”
“The ruthless terrorists killed civilians at random,” police officer Mohamed Omar told AFP. Security forces killed five members of the Islamist group, the source said.
The attackers were designated as “Kharijites”, a term used by Somali authorities to refer to members of this group.
Hawo Mohamed, who lives near the site of the attack, said at least seven of his acquaintances were killed in the attack. “There is blood and body parts scattered around the site,” he told AFP.
Screams of panic
Hospitals have appealed for blood donations to treat the many injured, local media reported.
Standing in a queue of volunteers, Mahad Abdiaziz Ibrahim said he came because it was “the best thing” he could do. “I give my blood to help those who desperately need it.”
According to Ahmed Yare, a witness, the attack started from a hotel. “I saw people injured near the beach, people were screaming in panic and it was difficult to tell who was dead and who was not,” he told AFP.
“Everyone was in a panic and it was difficult to know what was happening because the shooting started shortly after the explosion,” said Abdilatif Ali, another witness.
According to him, people tried to cover themselves by lying on the ground while others tried to flee.
The radical Islamist group Al Shabab, linked to Al Qaeda, has been carrying out actions against Somalia’s federal government for more than 17 years. Although they were expelled from the capital by African Union (AU) forces in 2011, the rebels remain very present in rural areas.
Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, who has vowed an “all-out” war against the jihadists, said on X that he would call an emergency meeting with the prime minister and “senior security officials to remedy the situation.”
AU President Moussa Faki Mahamat called the attack “merciless” in X, and the United Nations in Somalia condemned it as “despicable.”
In mid-July, nine people were killed and 20 others injured in Mogadishu when a car bomb exploded outside a crowded cafe during the broadcast of the Euro 2024 final, according to security sources.
The army has joined forces with local clan militias as part of a military campaign backed by the African Union and US airstrikes.
But the offensive has suffered several setbacks, with al-Shabab claiming earlier this year to have taken several towns in the centre of the country.
#dead #Islamist #group #attacks #Somalia
– 2024-08-06 19:24:23
