MOGADISHU, Jan. 12 (Reuters) – A car bomb exploded on a road leading to the airport in Mogadishu, the Somali capital on Wednesday, killing at least eight people, the city’s ambulance chief said.

Mohamed Osman, a resident of Mogadishu, said the shock of the explosion hit the walls and roof of a mosque he was praying in nearby.

“When I came out of the mosque, I saw several old collapsed houses, pieces of bodies on the street, hands, legs,” Osman told Reuters.

“Cars destroyed, Tuk tuks (rickshaws) burnt; all this mess and loss of life in one minute, I survived. “

It was not immediately clear who was responsible for the bombing.

Osman said he saw nine bodies at the scene. Abdikadir Abdirahman, director of the Aamin ambulance service, estimated the death toll at eight.

“A car bomb targeted a convoy, including armored cars on Avisione Street, we do not know who owns the convoy. We have transported eight dead to the scene,” Abdirahman told Reuters.

Earlier, a Reuters photographer saw four bodies and four damaged cars and two motor rickshaws while Ahmed Nur, a nearby shopkeeper, said he saw at least five bodies.

A paramedic was seen attending to at least one injured person, Reuters photographs taken at the scene showed.

In the past, the al-Shabaab group linked to al-Qaeda has taken responsibility for similar attacks.

The group aims to overthrow the central government and impose a strict interpretation of Islamic law. It carries out frequent gun and bomb attacks against security and government targets, but also against civilians.

It is also carrying out attacks against African Union peacekeeping troops.

Reporting by Feisal Omar and Abdi Sheikh; Written by George Obulutsa, edited by William Maclean

Our Standards: Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.