At least 13 soldiers are dead, more than 20 wounded inside a military academy following a suicide bombing attack claimed by Al Shabaab terror group in Somalia’s capital Mogadishu on Monday.
Following a military campaign by government forces and allied militiamen the previous year, the Al Qaeda-linked group has been forced to relinquish significant stretches of territory in southern Somalia. However, despite these setbacks, the terrorists have persisted in conducting deadly raids.
Over the past few weeks, as the military campaign against them faced a stall while the army readies a second phase of the offensive, Al Shabaab militants have intensified their attacks.
During late May, the group carried out a devastating attack on a base south of Mogadishu, resulting in the deaths of at least 54 Ugandan peacekeepers. Following that, for an alarming span of nearly two weeks, they laid siege to Baidoa, one of Somalia’s major cities.
On Monday’s incident, the Jale Siyaad military academy was the target of the bombing.
According to a soldier, identified as Ahmed, at Mogadishu’s military hospital, he is in possession of the bodies of 13 soldiers who lost their lives in the blast, while 20 others were wounded in the attack.
Captain Ali Farah, who personally knew some of the victims, said that they hailed from the Lower Shabelle region and had traveled to the capital for training.
Farah said that as the soldiers were being counted in the queue, the suicide bomber detonated himself.
In a statement, Al Shabaab claimed that the bomber had killed 73 soldiers and left 124 others wounded. The group often provides casualty figures that are notably higher than the numbers reported by the authorities.