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| Africa Horn |
| 16 killed in attack on Somali Supreme Court |
| 2013-04-14 |
| Nine al-Shabab Islamic extremists, most wearing suicide vests, stormed Somalia's main court complex on Sunday while the Supreme Court was in session, firing a barrage of bullets during a running gun battle with security forces that lasted two hours, officials said. A preliminary death toll stood at 16, including all nine attackers. The assault was the most serious in Mogadishu since al-Shabab militants were forced out of the capital in August 2011. Al-Shabab controls far less territory today than in years past, and its influence appears to be on the decline, but Sunday's attack proved the extremists are still capable of pulling off well-planned and audacious assaults. The attack on the Supreme Court complex began at around 12:30 p.m., sparking running battles with police and army forces. Two bomb blasts were heard and gunmen were seen on the roof of a court building firing shots, an Associated Press reporter at the scene said. Police officer Hassan Abdulahi said he saw five dead bodies lying at the entrance to the court. The militants took an unknown number of hostages during the siege. Many other government workers and civilians in the court complex -- a confusing labyrinth of buildings and rooms -- hid while fearing for their lives. Western officials knew militants had been planning something major. The British Foreign Office on Friday released a travel warning for Somalia that warned of a high threat of terrorism. "We continue to believe that terrorists are in the final stages of planning attacks in Mogadishu," it said. The complex and sustained nature of the assault on the court system suggested militants hoped to inflict severe casualties. Later, a suicide car bomber rammed a vehicle carrying Turkish citizens. On a Twitter feed believed to belong to the militants, al-Shabab appeared to take credit for the attack. A posting said five militants from the "Martyrdom Brigade" took part in the "daring" attack. |
| Posted by:tipper |