32 killed civilians, others injured in Somalia beach attack

A devastating explosion on a crowded beach in Mogadishu, Somalia’s capital, on Friday evening, resulted in at least thirty-two fatalities and 28 injuries, according to Dr. Abdikadir Abdirahman, director of Aamin Ambulance Service. The death toll may still rise.

Somali state media attributed the attack to the militant group al Shabab. In response, security forces neutralized five al Shabab attackers, while a sixth attacker detonated a suicide bomb during the assault, as reported by the state news agency SONNA.

Although al Shabab, an al Qaeda-affiliated group, has not yet claimed responsibility for the attack, they have been linked to similar incidents in the past.

The blast occurred at Lido beach, a popular spot where residents were swimming, according to former Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire’s statement on his X account.

Khaire condemned the timing of the attack, noting that it coincided with the beach’s busiest hour, demonstrating the terrorists’ disregard for Somali lives “The fact that the terrorist attack coincides with this night when the beach is the most congested shows the hostility of the terrorists to the Somali people,” he said.

The group has been waging a violent insurgency against Somalia’s federal government since 2006 in a bid to establish its own rule based on its interpretation of Islamic Sharia law.

Attacks by Al-Shabaab have been repelled by government-backed forces since the mid-2010s.

Despite the gains recorded against Al Shabaab, the group still controls vast areas in southern and central Somalia and launches sporadic attacks on civilian and military targets.