At least 5 killed in bomb attack in Somalian town of Afgoye

At least five people were killed Wednesday and 10 wounded in a bomb attack in Somalia's lower Shabelle region in the state of South West, according to officials.

The attack involved an improvised explosive (IED) device that targeted a security checkpoint in the town of Afgoye, said Ibrahim Ali, a security official in South West who spoke to Anadolu.

He said the number of wounded included civilians and security personnel who were rushed to hospitals and medical facilities in the national capital of Mogadishu.

Afgoye is a strategic agricultural town 30 kilometers (18 miles) southwest of Mogadishu.

No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.

But the bombing comes hours after al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for a bomb attack in the port city of Bosaso that targeted a senior security official in the semiautonomous state of Puntland.

Somalia has been plagued by insecurity for years, with the main threats emanating from al-Shabaab and the Daesh/ISIS terror groups.

Since 2007, al-Shabaab has been fighting the Somali government and the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) -- a multidimensional mission authorized by the African Union and mandated by the UN Security Council.

The terror group has stepped up attacks since Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, who was elected for a second term in 2022, declared an "all-out war" on the group.