PRETORIA, February 27. /ITAR-TASS/. A car bomb set off by a suicide bomber has exploded on Thursday near the headquarters of Somalia’s intelligence service in the neighborhood of Lido beach, northern part of Mogadishu, according to local police.

Local media reported that victims of the blast became at least 10 people, and many were wounded.

The Islamist militant group al-Shabaab, affiliated with al-Qaeda, has claimed responsibility for the terrorist attack. As its spokesperson Sheikh Abdulaziz Abu Musab told journalists, “The attack was aimed at military”. On the previous week, the group claimed responsibility for the attack on presidential palace in Mogadishu.

Al-Shabaab stood behind numerous terrorist attacks in Somalia. Earlier, it controlled a major part of central and southern regions of the country. However, in two recent years, forces of the African Union managed to drive the militants out of the capital and other major cities.