Somalia’s jihadi rebels, al-Shabaab, have claimed responsibility for the bombings, according to the group’s Andalus radio station.
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Many Somalis were seen outside the gate and AU forces were also at the gate at the time of the explosion.
Two suspected Al-Shabab vehicle bombs exploded outside the main entrance of Mogadishu’s airport early Tuesday, July 26, during morning rush hour, said security officials of Somalia.
The guards were caught in the blast as they escorted United Nations personnel into the base, known as Halane, he added.
Claiming the attack, Al-Shabaab spokesman Abdiasis Abu Musab said both attackers detonated auto bombs and that it was targeting the AU force’s headquarters.
There are reports of casualties among security guards on the checkpoint.
Al-Shabab is waging an insurgency against Somalia’s weak U.N.-backed government with the goal of establishing an Islamic emirate, ruled by a strict form of Islam.
Abdisamad Hassan, a Somali Member of Parliament and former security minister, told Anadolu Agency via telephone that at least 14 people were killed in the attack and up to nine others were injured.
AMISOM, the African Union peacekeeping force, said on Twitter that it condemned the attack.
Al-Shabab said in its statement that Badbado was a “former lawmaker” who had “repented from the apostasy in the year 2010 when he publicly announced defecting from the apostates”.
The capital city has a contingent of some 22,000 troops from the African Union to help bolster the government in its battle against Shabaab insurgents.
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The terror group has been blamed for attacks in Somalia and neighboring countries targeting worldwide peacekeepers, aid workers and journalists, as well as soft targets such as schools and churches.
