A car bomb exploded at the gates of a military base in Somalia’s capital Saturday, killing at least eight soldiers and wounding 14 others, with the toll expected to rise, police said.
The al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab extremist group quickly claimed responsibility via its radio arm, Andalus. The group often targets military sites in Mogadishu and controls large parts of southern and central Somalia, with little sign of being hampered by the coronavirus pandemic.
Last month’s vote came just days after the president and regional governments, which have had a tense relationship, had agreed to hold a timely election. Somalia had aimed to hold its first one-person-one-vote in 50 years, but that prospect is fading.
How such a vote can be held in areas under the sway of al-Shabab remains unclear.
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