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Bombing in Somalia

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Today, an explosion killed at least 18 people at a graduation ceremony in the Somali capital, Mogadishu. The victims included two government ministers and two journalists. Anchor Marco Werman finds out more from the BBC’s Mohammed Olad Hassan, who was at the hotel where the bomb exploded.

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MARCO WERMAN: I’m Marco Werman.  This is The World. U.S. attention is closely focused on Afghanistan and Pakistan right now. The Obama Administration identifies those two countries as the epicenter of the extremist threat facing the United States. But administration officials are also worried about militants in places like Somalia.  And today, there was an example of Somali extremism at work. A suicide bombing blasted a hotel in the country’s capital, Mogadishu.  The target was a graduation ceremony inside. The bombing killed at least 19 people including four ministers of Somalia’s transitional government. The BBC’s Mohammed Olad Hassan was at hotel when the blast occurred.  He joins us know from Mogadishu.  Mohammed Olad Hassan, we’re relieved to hear that you are okay.  Can you tell us what you saw?

MOHAMMED OLAD HASSAN: It was some very shocking moments. Some of my colleagues laying in front of me dead. Some ministers laying in front of me dead, blood scattered everywhere in the room where a graduation ceremony was taking place.  Even the blood stains on my shirt I didn’t know where it came from, but apparently some people who were next to me were killed. But all I can remember is the sound and the explosion and the dust covering on my body. And what seemed to be a very happy graduation ceremony where parents, doctors and students were gathered immediately turned into a very shocking scene.

WERMAN: Mohammed, how did you manage to escape any injury?

HASSAN: Well, really thanks God. I don’t know exactly how I survived because I was few lines away from where the ministers were, but when the explosion occurred dust covered us everywhere. I didn’t know where I was headed to. But I can remember that I was jumping over chairs, and people laying on ground, some of the dead and some of them injured including my colleagues in the journalism.  And really I don’t know how I survived.

WERMAN: As you said, this was a graduation celebration. Who were the Somalis students and what were they graduating from, and why was this ceremony targeted?

HASSAN: The graduation ceremony was for medical, computer science, some engineering students from Benadir University, one of the few in the Somali capital Mogadishu.

WERMAN: So, professional students?

HASSAN: Professional students and people say the target was not the ceremony, but this is a bomber blew himself up because he was targeting five ministers, and then later the government sent soldiers to the area for investigation. They found a dead body apparently the suicide bomber and the government said he was a man dressed in woman’s clothes.

WERMAN: So the responsibility for this bombing, of course, falls on al-Shabab, that’s the Islamic militants who control much of Somalia. How much support does al-Shabab have from your perspective, and is it increasing?

HASSAN: The government only controls a few blocks in the capital. So even those who are against the al-Shabab cannot publicly talk about their refusal of the al-Shabab. They cannot show their lack of support. But principally all we know is that they have lost the hearts and minds of the ordinary people in Somalia because of their vulgar behaviors.

WERMAN: There’s a lot of speculation about al-Shabab’s links to al-Qaida. What do we actually know about those links?

HASSAN: People in the Somali capital particularly the government of the Shalis [PH] always accuse al-Shabab of having links with al-Qaida, and they say they have nothing to do with al-Qaida. I mean, at the same time show allegiance to Osama Bin Laden. They sometimes show foreign fighters along their front lines when they are fighting with the government soldiers. So verbally they deny the have something to do with al-Qaida, but practically they say they don’t consider al-Qaida as a terrorist organization.  But the Muslim brothers were fighting against  invaders.

WERMAN: I’d be curious to know what average Somalis have to say about President Obama’s commitment to 30,000 troops to battle. Basically, battle extremists in Afghanistan, in that part of the world. I mean, are Somalis saying, “Hey, what about us? We’ve got extremists here, too, and they’re ruining our lives?”

HASSAN: Absolutely, yes. The militants have their own funds; have their own support from unknown sources while the government is sovereign with a variable permission of the international community. Everybody is fed up about the situation, and saying the international community including the United States are making verbal promises rather than practical involvement in Somali [INDISCERNIBLE].

WERMAN: The BBC’s Mohammed Olad Hassan on today’s bomb blasts at a graduation ceremony in Mogadishu. Thanks very much, Mohammed and stay safe.

HASSAN: Thank you very much.

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