Muslim Judicial Council of SA condemns deadly Somalia blast

The Muslim Judicial Council of South Africa (MJC) has condemned Saturday’s deadly bomb attack in Somalia.

The exact death toll is yet to be released by the Somali government, but initial reports indicate that 90 people had died.

At least 100 more people were injured in the attack at a busy checkpoint in the capital Mogadishu.

MJC deputy president, Moulana Abdul Khaliq Allie, says the MJC stands strong with the people of Somalia.

“It saddens our hearts that as the year (2019) comes to an end, we find ourselves in a situation where Somalia is once again rocked by a devastating, murderous attack by individuals or a group. The MJC stands strong with the people of Somalia in condemning this horrendous attack on innocent people.”

Meanwhile, a Turkish military cargo plane has landed in the Somali capital to evacuate people who were badly wounded in the attack.

The plane also brought emergency medical staff and supplies, according to a tweet from the Turkish embassy.

Somali Information Minister Mohamed Abdi Hayir Mareye says 10 badly injured Somalis would be evacuated to Turkey. He added that Turkey had sent 24 doctors to treat the wounded who could not be evacuated.

The bombing was the 20th vehicle-borne explosives attack of 2019 in Somalia and the year is ending with more deaths from such attacks than 2018, according to the Hiraal Institute, a Mogadishu-based security-think tank.

Pope Francis prays for victims

After reciting the Angelus prayer on Sunday, Pope Francis prayed for the victims of a car bomb that exploded in Mogadishu, Somalia on Saturday.

“Let us pray to the Lord for the victims of yesterday’s horrific terrorist attack in Mogadishu in Somalia, where the explosion of a car bomb killed more than 70 people”, he said.

The Pope also promised his closeness to “all of their family members and those who mourn their deaths”.

The dead included many students from a university in the city. No-one has claimed responsibility for the attack. -Additional reporting by Reuters