Saturday, May 1, 2010

Two bomb blasts at a Somali mosque have killed at least 30 people and injured upwards of 70 more, according to reports.

The explosions occurred in Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu, shortly before the beginning of noon prayers. Reports said the explosions had occurred at a mosque with ties to the Islamic insurgent group al-Shabaab, although no group had claimed responsibility for the attacks. The location is often used as a venue for speeches by the insurgents.

According to one witness of the attack, “[t]he blasts happened while people were sitting inside Abdala Shideye mosque, waiting for noon prayers. Most of those killed and wounded were worshippers” and another said “[t]he blasts went of within minutes of each other…I saw dead bodies lying on the floor [that] I could not count.”

A high-ranking member of al-Shabaab was reportedly inside the mosque when the explosions occurred. The official, {{w|Fuad Mohamed Qalaf]], was, according to some witnesses, the target of the attack. Al-Shabaab has been fighting against UN forces, which are in control of only parts of the capital, and has been reported to have ties with al-Qaeda.