MOGADISHU, Somalia — A suicide car bomber blew himself up at the gate of a hotel that was being used by a delegation of Turkish officials Thursday in Somalia’s capital, killing three Somalis and shattering windows.
Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, speaking in Davos, Switzerland, said three Somalis were killed in the attack. The blast came one day before Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is scheduled to arrive in Mogadishu.
Erdogan denounced the attack during a speech he delivered at Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia.
“There was again a terrorist act in Somalia today. In whose name are they doing this? If it’s in the name of Islam, I am a Muslim and there is no such thing in Islam. Firstly, a Muslim cannot commit suicide,” he said. “In our religion there is no such thing as going and killing people.”
A Somali intelligence official said the Turkish delegation of about 70 members was staying at the hotel at the time of the attack but were unharmed.