A Shabaab suicide car bomber rammed the gates of a building that houses Turkish Embassy staff in Mogadishu, killing three Somali civilians as well as the bomber, and wounding nine other people. A ceasefire was declared in Lower Shabelle yesterday following clashes between government troops belonging to the Bimayal clan and those belonging to the Habar Gedir clan. A recent UN report said the Afgoye/Marka area of Lower Shabelle has been “heavily infiltrated by Shabaab.” The area is controlled by the Army’s 3rd Brigade, which is drawn mainly from the Hawiye/Habar Gedir/Ayr clan and has been accused of setting up illegal checkpoints and harassing civilians.
