16 killed in Mogadishu courthouse attack

Gunmen today stormed the Somali capital’s main court complex, firing guns and detonating two blasts.

Nine al-Shabab militants, most wearing suicide vests, stormed Somalia’s main court complex today while the Supreme Court was in session, firing a barrage of bullets during a running gun battle with security forces that lasted two hours, officials said. A preliminary death toll stood at 16, including all nine attackers.

The assault was the most serious in the city since al-Shabab militants were forced out of the capital in August 2011. Al-Shabab controls far less territory today than in years past, and its influence appears to be on the decline, but today’s attack proved the militants are still capable of pulling off well-planned and audacious assaults.