Somalia Attack

Police in Somalia said Saturday that 32 people died and 63 others were wounded in an attack on a beach hotel in the capital, Mogadishu, the previous evening. Police spokesperson Maj. Abdifatah Adan Hassa, told journalists that one soldier was killed in the attack and that the rest were civilians. Another soldier was also wounded in the attack, Hassan said. Witnesses reported an explosion followed by gunfire. Al-Qaida's East Africa affiliate, al-Shabab, said through its radio that its fighters carried out the attack. Lido Beach, a popular area in Mogadishu, is bustling on Friday nights as Somalis enjoy their weekend. A witness, Mohamud Moalim, told The Associated Press that he saw an attacker wearing an explosive vest moments before the man blew himself up next to the beach-view hotel. Moalim said some of his friends who were with him at the hotel were killed and others were wounded. Another witness, Abdisalam Adam, told AP that he saw many people lying on the ground and had help

Warship INS Kolkata, carrying 35 pirates who were apprehended in an operation off the coast of Somalia, reached Mumbai on Saturday morning, the Navy said. These pirates were then handed over to the Mumbai police, it said. The exercise was undertaken as part of the ongoing Operation Sankalp, wherein Indian Navy ships are deployed in the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Aden for the safety of seafarers and mercantile trade passing through the region. "INS Kolkata, with the 35 apprehended pirates, returned to Mumbai on March 23 and handed over the pirates to the local police for further legal action in accordance with Indian laws, specifically the Maritime Anti Piracy Act 2022," the Navy said. In an operation lasting over 40 hours that commenced in the early hours of March 15, INS Kolkata intercepted Pirate Ship ex-MV Ruen in the Arabian Sea based on inputs received by Indian Navy's Information Fusion Centre -Indian Ocean Region from UKMTO (United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations). The .

Two US Navy SEALs are missing after conducting a nighttime boarding mission off the coast of Somalia, according to a US official. The mission was not related to Operation Prosperity Guardian, the ongoing US and international mission to provide protection to commercial vessels in the Red Sea, or the retaliatory strikes that the United States and the United Kingdom have conducted in Yemen over the past two days, the official said on Saturday. The operation the missing SEALs were conducting was also unrelated with the St. Nikolas, which is the oil tanker seized by Iran, according to a US official. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss details that have not yet been made public. Besides the defense of ships from launched drones and missiles shot from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen, the US military has also come to the aid of commercial ships that have been the targets of piracy. In a statement on Saturday, US Central Command said that search and rescue operatio

Officials in Somalia say al-Shabab extremists on Wednesday killed one person and captured five others on a United Nations helicopter that made an emergency landing in an area controlled by the fighters. The minister of internal security of Galmudug state in central Somalia, Mohamed Abdi Aden Gaboobe, told The Associated Press by phone that the helicopter made the landing due to engine failure in Xindheere village. The minister said seven passengers were on board: six foreigners and one Somali national. He said al-Shabab captured five passengers and another was shot dead while trying to escape. One passenger remained at large. Al-Shabab has not claimed responsibility for the attack. The United Nations office in Somalia didn't immediately respond to questions. An aviation official said medical professionals and soldiers were on board the helicopter that was headed to Wisil town for a medical evacuation but made the emergency landing in an al-Shabab-controlled area. The official spoke

A group of five militants who seized another commercial ship near Yemen were likely Somali and not Iranian-backed Houthi rebels and were captured by US forces after fleeing the MV Central Park in the Gulf of Aden on Sunday, Pentagon press secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder told reporters on Monday. Ballistic missiles had been fired shortly after from Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen, and the Pentagon has not ruled out that the Houthis were somehow linked to the Somali-conducted attack. The attacks on commercial vessels have previously been conducted by Houthis and are part of a larger rise in violence in the region due to the Israel-Hamas war. Yemen's internationally recognised government in Aden has said this was a Houthi attack on the Central Park, a Liberian-flagged ship managed by Zodiac Maritime. The ship sent out a distress call and forces from the USS Mason, an American destroyer, responded.

Police in Somalia say two suicide car bombers killed at least 10 people early Wednesday when they targeted a military facility in a region at the heart of the government's offensive against al-Shabab extremists. The attack occurred in the Mahaas district of Hiran region after the dawn prayer. It was loud and heard all across the town, resident Osman Abdullahi told The Associated Press. I have rescued several people wounded in the attack, including soldiers and journalists who were embedded with soldiers. Police official Mahad Abdulle told the AP the vehicles exploded in a neighbourhood full of civilians and that at least 10 people were killed. Al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the attack. Mahaas is at the centre of the ongoing government offensive against al-Shabab, the al-Qaida-linked group of thousands of fighters that has controlled parts of central and southern Somalia for years. The government has vowed to defeat it this year. The Somali army, together with local militias,

The extremist group al-Shabab claimed responsibility Sunday for an unfolding armed attack on a hotel in the Somali capital. Al-Shabab said in a broadcast on its own radio frequency Sunday that said its fighters attacked the hotel Villa Rose, which has a restaurant popular with government and security officials. The hotel isn't far from the presidential palace in central Mogadishu, where a blast was heard, followed by gunfire. There was no immediate word on any casualties. Such militant attacks are common in Mogadishu and other parts of the Horn of Africa nation. Al-Shabab opposes Somalia's federal government, which is backed by African Union peacekeepers, and seeks to take power and enforce a strict version of Sharia law.

India on Sunday strongly condemned the terrorist attacks in Somalia's capital Mogadishu that left at least 100 people dead and urged the international community to stand united and resolute in combating terrorism in all forms and manifestations. "India strongly condemns the terrorist attacks in Mogadishu on October 29 that have claimed many innocent lives," an External Affairs Ministry statement said. "We extend our heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims and wish speedy recovery to those injured in the twin blasts," it said. "This attack again reminds the international community to stand united and resolute in combating terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, as it remains one of the gravest threats to international peace and security," the statement said. At least 100 people were killed in Saturday's two car bombings at a busy junction in Mogadishu, Somalia's President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said, expressing fear that the toll could rise. Somalia's government

Two car bombs exploded Saturday at a busy junction in Somalia's capital near key government offices, leaving scores of civilian casualties, police told state media. The attack came five years after a massive blast at the same location. The Somalia National News Agency cited national police spokesman Sadiq Dodishe on the toll. The attack in Mogadishu occurred on a day when the president, prime minister and other senior officials were meeting to discuss combating violent extremism, especially by the al-Qaida-affiliated al-Shabab group that often targets the capital. There was no immediate claim of responsibility. An Associated Press journalist at the scene saw many bodies and said they appeared to be civilians traveling on public transport. He said the second blast occurred in front of a busy restaurant. Images from the scene showed crushed tuk-tuks and other vehicles. The director of the Aamin ambulance service told the AP they had collected many wounded or killed. One of the ...

The traffic helpline of Mumbai Police has received a WhatsApp message from an international number advising the force to take care to avoid a "Somalia-type attack" in India, an official said on Friday. Last week the traffic helpline number had received several messages threatening of another "26/11-like" attack in the city. The latest message did not issue any threat but police are investigating its source, the official said. Terror group Al-Shabaab recently attacked the Hayat Hotel in Mogadishu, Somalia's capital. The message, though, did not make it clear which incident in the African country it was referring to.

AFP confirmed with family members that at least four of the dead had dual nationality

Somalia's Islamic extremist rebels, al-Shabab, claimed responsibility for the attack