At least 15 killed in suicide bombing at army camp in Somalia - witness

A witness told Reuters that he counted at least 15 dead bodies at the scene. [Courtesy]

At least 15 people were killed on Tuesday, in a suicide bombing at an army camp in the Somali capital Mogadishu, a Reuters witness who counted the bodies at Madina Hospital said.

Officials at the hospital confirmed they were killed in an attack earlier in the day at an army camp.

AFP News Agency has quoted an officer saying, “the attacker was waiting among new recruits who were queuing up outside the camp,”

There was no immediate claim of responsibility as of Tuesday, June 15 evening.

Islamist group al Shabaab frequently carries out bombings in the Horn of Africa country.

A Somali military officer, Odawaa Yusuf Rage, told state media earlier on Tuesday that 10 new recruits had been killed, and 20 others wounded, when a suicide bomber detonated explosives at a checkpoint outside of General Degaban military training camp in the capital.

BBC reports that the victims’ relatives gathered outside the hospital as those who sustained injuries were receiving treatment.

"My son is dead. I have seen with my eyes. Many boys perished," Amina Farah told Reuters.

Army recruit Ahmed Ali told Reuters that the camp was "overcrowded with new recruits and soldiers when the blast occurred".

Al-Shabab, the region's militant group that has been operating for more than a decade,  has been fighting for control of the country against the UN-sponsored government in Mogadishu.

An African Union force is supporting the Somali army.