Thursday December 11, 2025
FILE - A nighttime view of the Mogadishu shows buildings and streets illuminated across the city
Mogadishu (HOL) — Somali army guards shot and killed a suicide bomber who attempted to enter General Dhagabadan military camp in Mogadishu late Wednesday, stopping what officials said could have been a large-scale attack on the facility.
The Somali National Army said the attacker approached the camp’s main gate wearing an explosive vest and tried to blend into a line of soldiers. Guards became suspicious and opened fire, killing him before he could detonate the device.
Army officials said the response prevented the bomber from reaching densely populated areas of the base, which houses active troops and serves as one of the country’s main training sites for new recruits. The command praised the guards for maintaining heightened vigilance amid repeated threats.
General Dhagabadan has long been a high-value target for al-Shabab, which has carried out repeated bombings at or near the facility. In November 2022, a suicide bomber detonated at the camp’s front gates, killing at least a dozen people and wounding 11, according to state media. Witnesses told Hiiraan Online at the time that they saw several “lifeless bodies,” and residents reported hearing multiple smaller explosions after the initial blast. That attack came weeks after another bomber disguised himself as a soldier joined a line of recruits before detonating, killing one soldier and injuring several others. At least 20 people were killed in a suicide bombing at the camp in June 2021, and another attack three months later left only the bomber dead after he detonated his device before reaching his intended target.
The camp’s prominence has grown following the July 2024 decision by the European Union to inaugurate new facilities at the site, including modern shooting ranges and multi-purpose training tracks funded through the European Peace Facility, which has allocated 110 million euros to support the Somali National Army
Authorities said investigators are reviewing the incident and assessing whether the attacker had accomplices or support networks in the area.