At least 20 people have died, while 15 have sustained injuries, after a car bomb exploded in Somalia on Sunday morning.
Around 7:30 a.m. local time, Somali Police Officer Major Ahmed Ibrahim told CNN that an attacker rammed a vehicle filled with explosives into the main entrance of a port in Mogadishu, the nation’s largest city and capital.
The attacker had targeted police officers in the port’s customs and tax office, Ibrahim said. However, most of the victims ended up being port employees and pedestrians.
The deafening explosion, Ibrahim said, was followed by heavy gunfire.
After the blast, emergency responders arrived at the scene and rushed the wounded to hospitals. Dr. Isse Mohamud, who works at a nearby hospital, told CNN the death toll could climb as many of the injured were critically wounded.
Al Shabaab, a Somalia-based militant group with ties to al Qaeda, has claimed responsibility for killing 30 police officers, according to Radio Andalus, the group’s affiliated station.
CNN has not been able to confirm the deaths claimed by Al Shabaab.
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