Car bomb outside Somali president’s palace kills 12

MOGADISHU: At least 12 people, including soldiers and civilians, were killed in Somalia’s capital Mogadishu on Tuesday when a car bomb claimed by Al-Shabab exploded outside the Presidential Palace and also damaged two nearby hotels, an official said.
Information Minister Mohamed Abdi Hayir told state radio that a meeting of security officials was under way inside one of the hotels, the SYL, at the time of blast and that one minister and some state radio journalists were injured in the attack.
The hotel is frequented by government officials and police said it believed the facility was the likely target.
The SYL and another hospitality facility, both located near the Presidential Palace, were partially destroyed by the blast, Major Mohamed Ali, a police officer, told Reuters.
“The blast killed 12 (people) including soldiers and civilians and at least 30 others were wounded,” Ali said.
Gunfire could be heard after the blast and a huge cloud of smoke rose above the palace, outside which were the remnants of the car and splattered blood, according to a Reuters witness.