Mogadishu Mayor Abdirahman Omar was among the injured Wednesday when a suicide bomber attacked the local government headquarters in the capital city of Somalia, a victim’s relative told Reuters.
According to the source, the blast injured “many local officials” including the mayor. “A suicide bomber walked into the meeting hall and blew himself up,” he said.
Although Al Shabaab was not specifically named, it is likely the Al-Qaeda-affiliated group was involved in the attack.
Al-Shabaab has been terrorizing the Somali capital for months, and carried out additional bombings earlier this week, leaving dozens dead and injured.
The group has fought for more than a decade to overthrow the current, internationally-backed government in Somalia. Al-Shabaab pledged allegiance to Al-Qaeda in 2010 and carries out attacks in neighboring Kenya as well.
Israel and Somalia do not have diplomatic ties, and earlier this year a top senior Somali diplomat Abdullahi Dool was fired for publicly urging his country to establish formal relations with the Jewish State. Dool, who served as director of the Somali foreign minister’s office until forced to flee for his life, has since endured ongoing internet threats and abuse from the pro-Palestinian Authority sector in Somalia.