Unknown gunmen armed with pistols shot dead a Somali ministry official in Mogadishu on Thursday, security officials said.
Colonel Yahye Haji Ali, working with the Somali ministry of defence was shot and killed in the neighbourhood of Dharkenley in Mogadishu, according to a security official.
The gunmen escaped the scene after killing him. “I have seen the colonel laying on the ground with multiple bullet wounds, meaning the gunmen shot him several times, ” a witness told radio Dalsan during an interview.
“Immediately the deceased left his house, the gunmen started firing at him. He tried to escape but was felled by some of the bullets,” he added .
No group has claimed responsibility yet, and the motive of the attack is still unclear.
Extremist group al-Shabaab who have links with al-Qaeda have carried out similar attacks in the capital, killing dozens of government officials by shooting and suicide bomb attacks.
(Writing by Hassan Istiila. Editing by Julian Kamau)
