Wednesday, August 31, 2016
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MOGADISHU (HOL) – The death toll of a suicide truck bomb that was detonated outside the SYL Hotel in Mogadishu has climbed to 26 according to official and media sources.
According to security and hospital sources, at least 15 members of the security forces and six women are among the dead. More than 50 others were injured.
The suicide attack targeted government officials who convened at the hotel to discuss security according to one senior intelligent source who declined to be named. The hotel is popular with government officials because of its close proximity to the Villa Somalia, the official residence of the President of Somalia.
Police officials told reporters that the bomber managed to speed through nearby checkpoints and roads closed during the high-level meeting by ministers, MPs and civil society members.
“Security forces in the area tried to stop the car while firing at it, but the driver was able to pass through several checkpoints before it exploded outside the SYL hotel,” security official Mohamed Hassan said.
Ministers and lawmakers are among those injured in the powerful blast which sent plumes of smoke into the sky and blew off roofs from nearby buildings.
Deputy Defence Minister Mohamed Ali Haga told Radio Mogadishu that he and two other ministers sustained minor injuries in the attacks.
Hospitals around the capital were inundated with casualties, including soldiers and civilians, with hospital sources saying most of the wounded suffered light injuries from debris and shrapnel.
The SYL Hotel was targeted in a previous attack in February and last year in two attacks that left nearly 40 dead.
The attack which occurred in a heavily secured area of the city highlights the security challenges facing the Somali government and AMISOM forces who are struggling to contain Al Shabaab. The group has already claimed responsibility for this attack through pro-Al Shabaab Radio Andalus
Somali leaders as well as international partners have condemned the latest attack; praising security forces ‘swift’ response which they said prevented the bomber from reached his intended location.
Despite a string of territorial gains by allied Somali and AU forces against al-Shabab, the group continues guerilla attacks across large parts of the country.