5 dead in Mogadishu military bomb blast

Five people died in a blast on Wednesday including a suicide bomber after he detonated an explosive device at the gates of a military base in the Somali capital, officials and witnesses said. "The suicide bomber tried to enter the compound but guards stopped him, when he then detonated his bomb, killing three people on the spot including himself," said Farah Barre, a government security official. "Two more people died soon after from their wounds," he said, adding the attack on Wednesday morning took place at Villa Baidoa, a government military base near the busy K4 roundabout in central Mogadishu. No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, the latest in a string of blasts including roadside bombs and grenade explosions that have rocked Mogadishu in recent weeks. The war-torn city has seen an increase in such attacks since Al Qaeda-linked Shebab rebels abandoned fixed positions there in August and switched to guerrilla tactics against the Western-backed government. Witnesses said the bomber had tried to disguise himself as a government soldier to gain access into the compound. "I saw a man dressed in military uniform trying to enter the gate but he was stopped, and then minutes later I heard the huge blast," said Ahmed Mahmud, who was drinking tea on the street nearby. "I saw four bodies being carried away, and the bits of the body of the bomber were scattered around."