Car bomb explodes near Somali presidential palace in Mogadishu

At least one person was killed and 10 people were injured in a car bomb that exploded Saturday morning near the Somalian presidential palace in Mogadishu, police and hospital officials said.

“At 9:10 AM, a terrorist car loaded with explosives … rammed into a checkpoint near the Sayidka Junction. The security forces opened fire at the car while speeding to the Presidential Palace in Mogadishu,” a police statement read.

Police said the suicide car bomber also died in the blast.

“Thank God, the vigilance of the security forces has saved the people from the threat of terrorism to the innocent Somali people,” the statement added.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack that comes amid a political crisis in Somalia after the country’s president Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo’s mandate expired on February 8 with no timely elections.

Saturday’s incident was he second major explosion in the Somali capital in recent weeks.

Five people, as well as four attackers, were killed at the Afrik Hotel on January 31. The deadly siege left 10 other civilians injured and ended after Somali security forces battled militants for eight hours.

Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for that attack through a statement broadcast by Andalus Radio, its mouthpiece channel. CNN has been unable to independently verify this claim.

The insurgent group seeks to turn Somalia into a fundamentalist Islamic state. It has previously claimed responsibility for other attacks in Mogadishu, including a truck bombing in December which killed 85.