Somalia’s Islamic extremist rebels and militant group Al Shabaab on Monday launched two attacks on U.S. and European military targets in Somalia’s capital Mogadishu and detonated a car bomb targeting a European Union military convoy, officials said.
“We are aware that the al-Shabaab militants detonated two car bombs at the U.S. army base in Balidoogle area today,” Abdirahman Muse Ali, a Somalia army officer, said by phone. “Armed fighters also attacked the base from different directions.”
Soldiers at the base repulsed the attackers, which led to casualties on both sides, Ali said. The U.S. uses the facility to train Somalia National Army troops, he said.
Somalia’s Islamic extremist rebels, al-Shabab, have claimed the responsibility for the attack.
The U.S. military uses the Belidogle airstrip base to launch drones that attack al-Shabab targets and to train Somali troops.
The second attack was by a suicide car bomber targeting Italian peacekeepers in Mogadishu. The explosion missed the European Union peacekeepers but injured Somali civilians who were nearby, according to reports.
