Somalia: Senior police officer survives bombing in Mogadishu

MOGADISHU, Somalia - Somalia authorities say a senior police official has survived an attack by a car bomb explosion in Mogadishu, the country's capital on Wednesday morning, Garowe Online reports.

A witness confirmed to Garowe Online that the officer escaped unharmed after a bomb attached to his NISSAN SURF car parked outside a business center along Makka Al-Mukarama exploded.

The official has been identified as Abdirahman Osman Koronto.

At least two bystanders were reported to have slightly wounded in the incident which took place during the morning rush hour in the busy shopping street.

Somali Police cordoned off the area and urged the journalists and public to avoid the scene of the blast, while the injured were rushed to nearby hospitals.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the explosion, which was one of series of terror attacks in the capital in the past few months amid a heavy presence of police on main streets.

Meanwhile, Mogadishu's only free private Emergency Service, Aamin Ambulance said its work is at risk after police ordered to stop attending bomb sites in the city.

Despite losing ground, the Al-Qaeda-linked Al-Shabab group has carried out frequent car bombs in the city in an attempt to topple the Western-backed Government.

GAROWE ONLINE