Several security personnel injured in twin car bombings in central Somalia

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AA) – Several security personnel were injured when double car bombings hit Somalia’s central town of Dhusamareb, an official said.

Ibrahim Gedi, a security officer in the town of Adado in the central state of Galmudug, told the media over the phone that one car exploded on the airport road while the second explosives-laden car targeted a security checkpoint, adding that the security forces received intelligence tips prior to the attacks which were thwarted.

“We don’t know what was the terrorists’ target, but whatever they may have been attempting has been foiled by our security forces,” he said.

He said several security personnel who stopped the cars from entering the town sustained “non-life-threatening” injuries and were rushed to hospital.

Dhusamareb is the administrative capital of the central state of Galmudug and houses Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud who relocated from the capital Mogadishu to mobilize the local forces and boost the morale of the armed forces in the frontline state.

The al-Shabaab group claimed responsibility for the twin explosions.

The Horn of Africa country has been plagued by insecurity for years, with the main threats emanating from al-Shabaab and the ISIS groups.

Since 2007, the al-Shabaab has been fighting the Somali government and the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS), a multidimensional mission authorized by the African Union and mandated by the United Nations Security Council.

The group has increased attacks since the Somali president, who was elected for a second term last year, declared an “all-out war” on al-Shabaab.