Al Sshabaab claims responsibility after bomb attack killed Somali senior official

MOGADISHU, March 27 (Xinhua) -- The Islamist radical group of Al Shabaab in Somalia on Saturday claimed responsibility after a senior Somali government official was killed by a roadside bomb explosion in the Somali capital Mogadishu.

Ahmed Sheikh Mohamoud Qorleh, District Commissioner (DC) of Hamar Jajab district in Mogadishu, was killed after a remotely controlled bomb ribbed through his car, Banadir regional authority Abdi Kafi told Xinhua. The deputy DC for security was also injured in the blast which took place in the Somali government-controlled Afisyoni neighborhood, south of the capital Mogadishu.

Islamist Al Shabaab movement has previously targeted Somali government officials and security forces and have carried out similar high profile assassinations of senior Somali government officials.

The group, which controls much of south and center of the war ravaged east African country, wants to topple the internationally recognized Somali government which it considers as un-Islamic and a puppet of the West. Somali government security forces have cordoned off the area following the attack and began searches for the perpetrators of the attack.

Islamist rebels control large swathes of the restive coastal city while they covertly operate in the Somali government controlled side of the city where they have carried out attacks on the security forces and important government installations.

Somali government has been lately stating that it plans to wage a major offensive to stamp out Islamist insurgents from the capital.

The Islamist groups on the other hand have been parading newly trained fighters in Mogadishu and digging trenches along main streets in areas under their control in an attempt to stop the advance of Somali government forces backed of almost 5,000 African Union forces based in Mogadishu.

Related:
Senior Somali official killed in vehicle by grenade attack

MOGADISHU, March 27 (Xinhua) -- A senior somali government official was killed on Saturday in Mogadishu after unidentified assailants threw hand grenade into his vehicle, well-informed sources told Xinhua.

Somalia has been beset by close to two decades of civil conflict. The Somali defense minister escaped a car bomb attack this month in the government-controlled part of Mogadishu, which wounded five people.  Full story