Just before Eid al-Fitr, the feast at the end of Ramadan, two Al-Shabab vehicles carrying suicide bombers and gunmen attacked the entrance gates of Somalia's main airport in the capital Mogadishu on Thursday, killing five. The first vehicle exploded as they were stopped by peacekeepers at the first checkpoint, 500 yards from the terminal. Radio Garowe report that African Union stated "Two suicide bombers, dressed in TFG (Transitional Federal Government) combat uniforms,” ran from the second vehicle. They succeeded in passing the first gate and made their way towards the terminal building, firing small arms at AMISOM (African Union Mission in Somalia) soldiers.
The terrorists were stopped 200 yards from the building and blew themselves up. Two soldiers and three civilians also died in the action. Islamist rebel group Al-Shabab took credit for the attack. In the past two weeks there has been an upsurge in fighting between the Islamist rebels and the TFG. “Al-Shabab has ignored the President’s plea to allow the people of Mogadishu to celebrate the holy month of Ramadan in peace. They have deliberately triggered violence across the city, killing and injuring civilians and soldiers alike,” Minister of Information Abdirahman Omar Osman said on Horseed media.
In a statement the UN voiced its concern over thousands of civilians in Mogadishu who have fled their homes, and more than 230 have been killed, in the last two weeks. The heads of the UN Political Office for Somalia (UNPOS), the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), and the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), gave a joint statement describing the attack as a “heinous act of terrorism.”
