A roadside bomb has killed at least 15 people in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, witnesses say.
The explosion hit a group of women gathered to clean the street, witnesses said. They told of bloody scenes with several dozen people injured.
One witness told the AFP agency most of the dead were female street cleaners.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but tensions are high in Mogadishu as Ethiopian troops battle Islamist insurgents.
"They were cleaning the street when this huge explosion rocked the entire neighbourhood," eyewitness Hasan Abdi Mohamed told the AFP news agency.
"I counted 15 bodies, most of them are women who were torn to pieces," he added.
The UN says 1.5 million people have fled after recent fighting.
Somalia's opposition groups, which include Islamists ousted from power in 2006, are opposed to Ethiopian troops remaining in Somalia.
According to one estimate, more than 8,000 civilians have been killed and one million forced from their homes since the start of last year by fighting between the interim government and the insurgents.
DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.
Tags:
Latest Stories
-
Rudiger given six-game ban for throwing object at referee
6 minutes -
Communication Ministry investigates Cybersecurity breach affecting 5,700 MTN customers
10 minutes -
GBA’s demand to revoke CJ’s suspension is “legally flawed, disrespectful” – Thaddeus Sory
17 minutes -
Mahama nominates DCEs for Eastern Region
39 minutes -
Civil discourse and respect for all members key to unity in our party – Bawumia to NPP
45 minutes -
Dr Evans Duah: The genius behind the NPP’s ‘Thank You Tour’ chaos
57 minutes -
Kumasi Mayor refutes claims of ordering release of seized excavators
1 hour -
Standard Chartered launches call for applications for Cohort 5 of Women in Tech Incubator Programme
1 hour -
Failure to publish C.I. doesn’t prevent Mahama from suspending CJ – Srem-Sai
1 hour -
Apex Health Insurance launches newest product ‘Abusua Pa Health’ plan
2 hours -
ACDT leads research forum at Future of Digital Countries Summit
2 hours -
Post-marriage counselling key to addressing surge in divorce rates
2 hours -
40k jobs up for grabs under NEIP Adwumawura Programme – Eric Adjei
2 hours -
Why Mahama ordered audit into Agenda 111 projects – Health Minister discloses
3 hours -
GBA threatens court action if Mahama doesn’t revoke CJ suspension
3 hours