Mogadishu, Oct 14 (AP) A huge explosion from a truck bombkilled 20 people in Somalia's capital, police said today, asshaken residents called it the most powerful blast they'dheard in years.
The explosion appeared to target a hotel on a busy roadin Hodan district and at least 15 people were injured, policeCapt. Mohamed Hussein said. Security forces had been trailingthe truck after it raised suspicions, he said.
Gunshots could be heard at the site, and ambulance sirenswailed across the capital.
The blast occurred two days after the head of the USAfrica Command was in Mogadishu to meet with Somalia'spresident, and two days after the country's defense ministerand army chief resigned for undisclosed reasons.
The Somalia-based extremist group al-Shabab recentlystepped up attacks on army bases across south and centralSomalia. While there was no immediate claim of responsibilityfor today's blast, al-Shabab often targets high-profile areasof Mogadishu with deadly bombings.
The US military has stepped up drone strikes and otherefforts this year against the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab, whichis also fighting the Somali military and over 20,000 AfricanUnion forces in the country. (AP)NSA.
This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.