At least 78 people killed in Somalia truck bombing

Mogadishu, December 28 :

In Somalia, at least 78 people were killed and over 125 were injured this morning when a truck bomb exploded at a busy security checkpoint in capital city Mogadishu. It was the worst attack in Mogadishu in more than two years.

A government spokesman said, the toll was likely to rise as scores of people were rushed to hospitals. Mayor Omar Mohamud Mohamed said, university students were among those killed.

A police official said the blast targeted a tax collection centre during the morning rush hour in Mogadishu. All the dead were civilians.

There is no immediate claim of responsibility for the blast. The Al-Qaida-linked al-Shabaab group often carries out such attacks.