Witnesses in the Somali capital say a car bomb explosion has killed the country's former defense minister.
A police officer at the scene said the bomb had been planted underneath the car of Muhiyadin Mohamed Haji Ibrahim, the former defense minister who currently works as an adviser for the Somali parliament. The blast occurred Monday in Mogadishu's KM4 neighborhood.
Ibrahim was a member of the Kulan political party.
Kulan chairman Abdulkadir Barnaamij told VOA's Somali service that the attack targeting Ibrahim happened hours after he attended a party meeting in the capital.
No one has immediately claimed responsibility for the blast but it bore the hallmarks of the Somali militant group al-Shabab.
The militants, which have links to al-Qaida carry out frequent attacks, often targeting government officials and African Union troops.
