Al-Shabaab kills 5 in suicide bombing and gun attack
Somali soldiers stand at the scene of car bomb at Al Hindi restaurant in Mogadishu on April 11, 2016. A suicide car bomber and a gunman also died, as did two civilians, apparently shot by police responding to the attack claimed by Somalia’s Al-Qaeda-aligned Al-Shabaab. PHOTO | AFP
What you need to know:
- A suicide car bomber and a gunman also died, as did two civilians, apparently shot by police responding to the attack claimed by Somalia’s Al-Qaeda-aligned Al-Shabaab.
- The Washington Post reported that Somali children, who had defected from the Al-Qaeda linked Al-Shabaab terror group, were being used by Nisa as spies.
MOGADISHU
Islamic jihadists killed three police officers in a bomb and gun attack on a police station in the Somali capital Mogadishu on Monday, city authorities said.
A suicide car bomber and a gunman also died, as did two civilians, apparently shot by police responding to the attack claimed by Somalia’s Al-Qaeda-aligned Al-Shabaab.
Other civilians were also wounded.
“The attack involved two Shabaab members, one of them driving a car loaded with explosives, and another tried to storm the police headquarters but was shot dead. We have lost three policemen,” said Abdifatah Omar Halane, spokesman for the Mogadishu city administration.
He added that two civilians were also shot dead.
“Two other civilians were shot dead separately at a nearby street,” Mr Halane said, adding that the police believed to be responsible had been arrested.
Meanwhile, Somalia has formed a committee to probe claims that the National Intelligence and Security Agency (Nisa) used children as spies.
Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Sharmarke constituted the ministerial team in a reaction to claims published by the US-based Washington Post on Saturday.
A statement released by the Prime Minister’s office said Dr Sharmarke named four ministers to investigate the matter.
The Washington Post reported that Somali children, who had defected from the Al-Qaeda linked Al-Shabaab terror group, were being used by Nisa as spies.
“The boys were used for years as informants by the country’s National Intelligence and Security Agency (Nisa), according to interviews with the children and Somali and UN officials,” the paper reported, hinting that in the new role, the underage were exposed to yet another dangerous role.
The Washington Post stated that Nisa was supported by the US government to combat Al-Shabaab.
“This committee will look into and investigate allegation weight against the Security Agencies using children who defected from Al-Shabaab as spies as alleged in some news portals,” said Dr Sharmarke.
He reiterated that the Somali Federal Government had in the past, and now, extended pardon to any person who defects from the Al-Shabaab.
The Premier pointed out that in particular, the brainwashed children who defect (from the jihadist group) were granted protection and rehabilitation and reintegration into the society.
