Bomb Attack On UN Vehicle In Somalia Kills At Least Nine; Two Kenyans Among Dead

Update as of 4:00 a.m. EDT: Al-Shabab, which is battling Somalia's government for control of the country, has claimed responsibility for the attack on a vehicle carrying United Nations’ employees at its Garowe office in Somalia’s Puntland region on Monday, according to media reports.

Original story:

At least nine people were killed after a bomb attack on a United Nations’ vehicle carrying employees to its Garowe office in Somalia’s Puntland region on Monday, according to media reports. The casualties of the blast that took place outside the Garowe base included two Kenyans and seven Somalis, a police official told Reuters.

"A blast hit the bus carrying workers to the U.N. office in Garowe,” Mohamed Abdi, a police officer reportedly said.

The bomb was apparently planted under a seat and detonated by a remote control, Somali police official Yusuf Ali told the Associated Press.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack so far. Al-Shabab militants have, however, launched several attacks in parts of Somalia and also across the border, especially in Kenya.

Nick Kay, U.N. special representative of the secretary-general for Somalia, condemned the attack.