Islamists claim responsibility for attack on Somali PM

DUBAI: A Somali Islamist group yesterday claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing that targeted Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Gedi.

In a statement posted on the internet, the Islamist group said: "A lion of the Mujahideen Youth Movement, our brave brother Abdul-Aziz Mohammad Semter, carried out a heroic martyrdom operation at the residence of the apostate Prime Minister.

"The operation ... resulted in several deaths and injuries and we will provide the details of the operation at a later stage," it said. "Your brethren at the Mujahideen Youth Movement are pressing on with their holy fight against all occupiers and apostates."

Mr Gedi has accused al-Qa'ida of being behind yesterday's suicide bombing that killed seven people outside his home in Mogadishu, and said its militants had to be eliminated. Five soldiers and two civilians were killed when the bomber detonated a vehicle rigged with explosives at the gates of Mr Gedi's residence in a heavily guarded neighbourhood.

African Union peacekeepers raced to the area and whisked the Prime Minister to safety. Near-daily attacks on government troops and their Ethiopian military allies are blamed on members of a defeated Islamist movement who have vowed to wage an "Iraq-style" insurgency.

Reuters