Somalia's spy agency: Foreign hand behind truck bombing

By Magdalene Mukami

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AA) - Somalia's spy agency has accused a foreign country of carrying out Saturday's terror attack that killed more than 80 people, including two Turkish nationals.

"An initial report indicating that the massacre of the Somali people in Mogadishu on Dec. 28, 2019 was planned by a foreign country. In the ongoing investigation, we will work with some of the world's intelligence agencies,” the Somalia National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) said in a statement on Monday.

A bomb-laden truck rammed into a security checkpoint in the capital Mogadishu in the latest attack to have hit the Horn of Africa nation.

Turkey was one of the first countries to reach out to Somalia after the attack. On Sunday, a Turkish plane brought medicines to the injured and returned with 16 Somali nations who required immediate specialized treatment.

Qatar has also sent doctors and 4 tons of medical supplies to Mogadishu.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but in the past Al Qaeda-linked al-Shabaab has wreaked havoc in the country.