7 dead in Mogadishu mortar attack

MOGADISHU.  May 8. KAZINFORM At least seven people were killed and six more injured after an overnight mortar attack in the south of the Somali capital Mogadishu, emergency officials and witnesses said Tuesday.

According to Xinhua, a series of attacks have been launched in the Horn African country by Al-Shabaab militants since they fled the capital following major offensives by Somali government forces backed by African Union peacekeepers in August last year.

"Seven people died after the mortars hit their homes in Mogadishu. The dead included four children. Six others were injured and taken to the hospital," Ali Muse, head of the Mogadishu voluntary emergency service, told Xinhua.

Reports say four of the dead were from a single family. A father, mother and their two children were instantly killed after the mortar attack fired by the rebels. Two children from the family were also reported to be among the injured.

The Al-Shabaab movement which is allied to Al-Qaida has launched a number of mortar attacks in Mogadishu targeting the government and AU peacekeepers, but killing civilians in most cases.

The radical group has not so far claimed responsibility for the attack.