A car bomb exploded near a hotel and restaurant in the Somali capital on Thursday, killing at least 11 people, emergency services said.
The afternoon explosion on a busy road in Mogadishu sent a huge cloud of smoke into the sky and destroyed two restaurants and cars parked in the area.
At least 11 people were killed and 16 wounded, the ambulance service said.
“The blast destroyed a restaurant and killed many who were inside and outside the restaurant. The death toll may rise,” police Major Mohamed Husssein told Reuters.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the bombing. Al Qaeda-linked Al Shabab militants have in the past targeted the same location, the Wehliye Hotel, which is along the busy Maka al Mukaram road.
On Saturday, 15 people were killed in two explosions and a gunfight between al Shabaab militants and security personnel in central Mogadishu.