Suicide blast targets convoy in Somali capital

A suicide car bomb killed at least eight people in the Somali capital on Saturday near the president’s palace, police said.

Al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab said it was behind the attack, which targeted a convoy going into the palace.

Police told reporters at the scene of the blast that casualties could be higher since some of the dead and wounded had been taken away by their relatives.

A government spokesman said among those killed was Hibaq Abukar, an advisor of women’s and human rights affairs in Prime Minister Mohammed Hussein Roble’s office.

It was not immediately clear if she was in the convoy or just happened to be close by when the blast happened.

Al Shabaab wants to overthrow the government and impose its own strict interpretation of Islamic law.

The group frequently carries out such bombings.