Somali Elections: Terrorist Attack on Hotel, Traffic Ban Imposed

Local Editor

A traffic ban had been imposed and major roads sealed off in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, ahead of a presidential vote. A hotel in the port city of Bosasso had been struck by al-Shabab terrorists.

MPs will gather at the airport to elect a new head of state.

On Tuesday evening, suspected al-Shabab militants launched a series of attacks, with two mortar rounds fired close to the venue where the vote will be held.

Residents in Arbacow village outside Mogadishu say jihadists attacked an African Union [AU] military base there.

More than 20 candidates are vying to become Somali president, with the top three proceeding to a second round of voting and the top two from that round going forward to a third and final vote.

Incumbent President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud is standing for re-election and analysts say he is likely to be one of those who goes forward to the later rounds.

Results are expected later on Wednesday.

The airport is viewed as the most secure site in the Somali capital and voting was moved there from a police academy because of growing security concerns.

Wednesday's security measures will include a ban on flights to and from Mogadishu airport.

Correspondents said most schools and offices remained open on Tuesday but people had had to walk to reach their destination.

In a separate development, a terrorist attack by the al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab militants on a hotel in Somalia's port city of Bosasso left four guards and two assailants dead.

"Three al-Shabab fighters stormed the International Village Hotel this morning. Four guards and two of the attackers died in the fighting," said Bari region Governor Yusuf Mohamed on Wednesday.

According to the governor, none of the guests at the hotel, which is popular with foreigners, were hurt in the armed assault. He said one of the assailants fled the scene and remained at large.

"Fortunately, the attackers did not enter the rooms. The fighting took place inside the compound. A third fighter escaped and we are pursuing him. All the people in the hotel are safe," Mohamed said.

Somalia has not seen a powerful central government since former dictator Mohamed Siad Barre was toppled by warlords in 1991. Since 2007, nearly 22,000 African Union [AU] peacekeeping forces had been deployed to the impoverished country in a bid to assist the government's battle against al-Shabab militants.

The group continues to wage terror attacks in Mogadishu despite having been flushed out of the capital and other major cities by the joint forces of the government and the AU.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team