Dozens of students killed as car bomb explodes in Mogadishu

A car bomb has exploded at a security checkpoint in Somalia, killing over 70 people

At least 76 people are reported to have been killed after a car bomb exploded at a security check point in war-torn Somalia.

The blast targeted a tax collection centre during the morning rush hour as Mogadishu, the country’s capital, returned to work after its weekend.

Local officials say most of the victims were students returning to class, while soldiers and police officers are also among the dead.

The suicide bomber drove its vehicle into a well-known junction that links the south of Somalia to the capital, which has been the scene of conflict for over a decade.

An ambulance spokesman has warned that further fatalities are expected because of the severe nature of the injuries among an estimated 50 people hurt.

Witness Mohamed Abdi Hakim said: ‘I saw many dead bodies lying on the ground. Some of those dead were police officers, but most of them were students.’

55-year-old Sabdow Ali, who lives near the scene of the blast, added: ‘Dozens of injured people were screaming for help but the police immediately opened fire and I rushed back to my house’.

Photos from the scene showed the mangled frames of vehicles, with a large black plume of smoke rising into the sky above.

No group has yet claimed responsibility for the bomb but al-Shabab militants have often carried out attacks there.

The Al Qaeda-linked group was pushed out of Mogadishu several years ago but is known to target high-profile areas such as checkpoints and hotels in the city.

It has been waging insurgency wars for 10 years and was blamed for a devastating truck bombing in October 2017 that killed more than 500 people, though the group never claimed responsibility for the blast.

Al-Shabab is the target of a growing number of US air strikes since President Donald Trump took office, and controls parts of Somalia’s southern and central regions.

It funds itself with a ‘taxation’ system that experts describe as extortion of businesses and travellers that brings in millions of dollars a year.

The latest bombing will raise questions over whether Somali forces are ready and able to replace an African Union force that has been responsible for boosting security.