Somalia explosion: Six people killed in bus attack

At least six people have been killed in an explosion targeting a passenger bus outside Somalia's capital, Mogadishu.

The explosion happened in the Lower Shabelle region on Wednesday, the Somali News Agency said.

Another 12 people, including children, were injured, according to the regional governor.

The bus was travelling from the port city of Marka to Qoryooley, a district further south in the region.

No group has yet come forward to admit responsibility for the attack.

Governor Mohamed Ibrahim stated that a terrorist group had carried out the explosion - but did not disclose the name of the suspected group.

• Are Islamist militant attacks on the rise in Somalia?

In the past, al-Shabab, which is linked to al-Qaeda, has claimed responsibility for similar attacks.

In May, the group destroyed a military base housing Ugandan forces with the African Union peacekeeping mission, using suicide bombers.

Al-Shabab were also behind the 2013 four-day siege on the Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi, where 67 people were killed and 150 injured.

The group has been fighting since 2006 to topple Somalia's central government and implement its own governance, based on a strict interpretation of Islamic Sharia law.

The group once occupied large areas of Somalia, but have been increasingly pushed back by government counter offensives, supported by allies including the US, Turkey and the African Union.

The Somali government declared war on the militant group when President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud came to power in May 2022.

Earlier this week, Somali security forces killed 25 al-Shabab militants in a planned raid on the Hiran region.