Blast kills two outside Turkish military training camp in Mogadishu

Mogadishu, June 23, 2020 – Two people were killed on Tuesday by an Al-Shabaab suicide bomb outside Turkey’s military training base in Somalia, according to the army chief. The army chief Brigadier General Odowaa Yusuf Rageh told state media that the attacker had tried to conceal himself among young recruits who had gathered to enlist in the academy, which trains Somali troops in Mogadishu. “Someone wearing an explosive device tried to sneak into a crowd of university students who wanted to join the armed forces, but he was shot by the security forces and detonated before he got to the area of the students,” said Rageh. A civilian and one of the prospective students were killed, he said.

The Al-Qaeda linked Islamist group Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement carried by the SITE intelligence agency, saying they had targeted “Somali militia officers”. Turkey’s defence ministry confirmed the attack in a statement on Twitter, saying the blast had taken place 200 metres (yards) from the military facility. “We condemn in the firmest manner the terrorist group which carried out this attack … we will not leave our Somali brothers alone in their fight against terrorist groups,” read the statement.

Turkey’s military academy was opened in 2017. It is the largest foreign-run military centre in Somalia, where several nations are training soldiers to take over from African peacekeeping force AMISOM, whose troops are set to leave the country next year after 14 years. Somalia plunged into chaos after the 1991 overthrow of president Siad Barre’s military regime, leading to years of clan warfare followed by the rise of Al-Shabaab which once controlled large parts of the country and capital. After being pushed out of their main bastions by AMISOM in 2011, Al-Shabaab has continued to wage war against the government, with regular attacks in Mogadishu and against neighbouring countries which have contributed to the force.

Turkey is one of Somalia’s closest foreign partners, offering humanitarian assistance and scholarships, and recently sending planeloads of medical equipment to help the country deal with the coronavirus  pandemic. During some of the worst attacks in Mogadishu, Turkey has often flown the wounded to its country for treatment. According to the Turkish foreign ministry website, the country’s largest embassy complex abroad is in Mogadishu and investments in the country total $100 million (88 million euros). Turkish companies also run the Mogadishu international airport and seaport.

AFP