Egypt Condemns Bombing of 2 Booby-trapped Cars in Somalia

On Wednesday, Egypt condemned the two simultaneous terrorist attacks with two booby-trapped cars in the town of Mahas, central Somalia, which resulted in a number of victims and injuries.

In a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Egypt expressed its sincere condolences and sympathy to the government and people of Somalia, and to the families of the victims of this disgraceful attack, wishing a speedy recovery for the injured.

Egypt confirmed its solidarity and full support for the state of Somalia in the face of all forms of extremism and terrorism. It called for the concerted efforts of the international community to confront terrorism and dry up its sources.

Notably, Somali security officials said at least nine civilians were killed, and several others wounded in two simultaneous car-bombing attacks that took place in the early hours of Wednesday in Mahas town, in the Hiran region of central Somalia.

“The terrorists attacked Mahas this morning using vehicles loaded with explosives,” a representative of local security forces told the media.

“They have targeted a civilian area, and we have confirmed that nine people, all of them civilians, died in the two explosions.”

Witnesses mentioned that the car explosions happened in front of a restaurant near a district administration building in Mahas.

According to one witness, there were women and children among the nine victims.

The deadly attack was blamed on Al-Shabaab, a jihadist movement, which has been fighting against the Somali government and terrorizing people since 2006.

The terrorist attack came as the country’s armed forces of the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) have intensified military operations against the al-Qaeda, an-affiliated al-Shabaab group.

The Somali Armed Forces managed to regain control over some strongholds of al-Shabaab in the south and central regions of the country, including in the Hiran region, where the Wednesday attack took place.

Over the past few weeks, the Al-Shabaab terrorist group suffered a series of defeats after the newly-elected government of President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud declared an “all-out-war” against the terrorist group.