Two people were killed after a suicide bomber detonated his explosives inside a Turkish military training base in Somalia's capital, police said Tuesday.
Al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab extremist group quickly claimed responsibility, according to its Radio al-Furqan affiliate.
It was the first time Turkey's largest overseas military base has been attacked by the Somalia-based group.
Police Capt. Mohamed Hussein said the attack occurred as new military cadets were doing their morning drills.
Col. Ahmednor Abdulle, a Somali military officer, said authorities were investigating how the bomber managed to sneak into the base, the Associated Press reported.
The Turkish Defense Ministry in a statement said a Somali citizen was killed and one other person was wounded. It said no Turkish personnel were hurt and there was no damage to the barracks.
Turkey has a significant presence in Somalia and operates one of a number of foreign military training operations in the Horn of Africa nation long destabilized by conflict.
The Turkish ministry condemned the “terrorist organization and its supporters who carried out this cowardly attack.”
“We will not leave our Somali brothers alone in their fight against terrorist organizations.”
This article has been adapted from its original source.
