Somalia’s al-Shabaab group launched a violent attack targeting a military base, which resulted in the death of dozens of people.
Qatar’s ministry of foreign affairs strongly condemned an attack that targeted a military base in Somalia, killing 30 people.
In a statement released on Monday, the ministry stressed its firm position against violence and terrorism, despite motives and reasons.
“The statement expressed the condolences of the State of Qatar to the families of the victims and the government and people of Somalia,” according to MoFA.
On Sunday, attackers hurled car bombs targeting a military base in Galmudug’s Wisil town in central Somalia, which triggered a fight with government troops and armed groups, Major Mohamed Awale, a military officer in Galmudug told Reuters.
“They attacked the base with two car bombs and fierce fighting that lasted over an hour followed,” the security official told reporters.
“The car bombs damaged the military vehicles…residents were well armed and reinforced the base and chased the al Shabaab.”
At least 30 people, including 17 soldiers and 13 civilians, died in the violent attack, Awale said.
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The al Qaeda-allied al Shabaab has been fighting in Somalia for over a decade to oust the nation’s central government in order to establish its own rule based on its rigid interpretation of Islamic sharia law.
During the brutal attack that lasted for about an hour, Abdullahi Mohamed, a resident in Wisil said he and others had “crept and slept on the ground,” adding that he personally saw about 30 individuals injured during the attack.
Somalia’s government condemned the assault, confirming that 41 al-Shabaab assailants were killed in the counter-attack that saw both the military and armed residents fight back, state news agency, SONNA said.
The statement said victims were airlifted to the capital Mogadishu for medical care.
“Al Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack via a statement on its Radio Al Andalus and said its fighters had killed over 30 soldiers and injured over 40 others,” Reuters said.
