Fourteen killed in Somalia minibus accident: Official

Fourteen people died and four others were wounded Wednesday when the minibus they were travelling in ran over a landmine on the outskirts of Somalia’s capital Mogadishu, a regional official said.

“We have confirmed that 14 people died and four others were wounded after a minibus travelling along the road between Mogadishu and Balcad ran over a landmine,” said Andikarim Mohamed, a government official from the south-central Hirshabelle region.

The accident took place about 30 kilometers (18 miles) north of Mogadishu, in what Mohamed called a “horrible and evil act”.

Somali military commander Abshir Mohamed, who works in the area, blamed the incident on the al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabaab extremists who carry out regular attacks in the country.

“The terrorists are indiscriminately targeting everybody. They planted the mine that had killed those innocent civilians who we were going about their businesses travelling,” he told state media.

Witness Mohamud Adan told AFP he saw the “dead bodies of ten people” taken from the scene of the explosion.