Three ministers, two journalist among nineteen killed in Somali bomb blast

19 people have been killed and many wounded in an explosion in Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu, according to the latest reports.

An explosion ripped through an upscale hotel in the Somali capital today during a university graduation ceremony, killing three cabinet ministers, two journalists and four others, officials said. Hundreds of people and many state officials were there.

More than three dozen medical, computer science and engineering students had gathered to receive their diplomas in a ceremony at the Shamow Hotel, which sits in the small patch of Mogadishu held by the nation's weak central government.

The ministers for education, higher education and health were killed in the blast, said the Information Minister, Dahir Mohamud Gelle, and the ministers for sport and tourism were wounded.

Two reporters were killed in the blast and two other journalists seriously wounded, said Bashir Khalif, a reporter for the Government's radio service.

Several hundred people had gathered inside a decorated ballroom in the Shamow Hotel to celebrate the graduations. Attendees sat on plastic chairs and faced a small stage when the explosion erupted.

The university was established in 2002 by a group of Somali doctors.
An Associated Press reporter attending the ceremony said the explosion did not appear to be from a mortar because the roof remained intact. Instead, the blast was likely caused by a bomb planted in the hotel or possibly by a suicide bomber.

Local reports have it that a man disguised as a woman in hijab entered the venue and triggered the explosion. The hardline group al Shabaab which Washington says is linked to Al Qaeda could be one of the masterminds behind the attack, but non of the groups fighting among each other and against the TFG government has come out with a statement yet.

African troops protecting the fragile Government are helpless in the ensuing chaos. Hospitals overwhelmed with the injured.

ECOTERRA Intl. condemned with strongest possible words today's terror attack in Somalia and morns the death of colleagues and friends. "We convey our heartfelt condolences to all the families of those who lost their lives and share their grief as well as the suffering of those who got injured in this cowardly and senseless assassination of some of the best the Somali society has left in Mogadishu, like Prof. Adow, whom we will miss dearly!", stated Dr. Hans-Juergen Duwe from Nairobi, speaking for the human rights and nature protection organization.

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