1st LD: Death toll from Mogadishu hotel blast rises to 15

At least 15 people were killed and several others injured Sunday in a hotel blast in the Somali capital Mogadishu, police said.

Police officer Abdulle Mohamed said a suicide bomber detonated his car at the gate of Jazera hotel that is located near Mogadishu international airport. He said most of the deceased are civilians whose bodies have been pulled out from the rubble.

"Now death toll has risen to 15, including hotel guards, but most of the dead are civilians," Mohamed told Xinhua from the scene.

"We were able to retrieve bodies from the rubble; some of the buildings of the hotel collapsed due to the force of the explosion," he said, adding the injured have been rushed to hospital.

Somali police commander General Mohamed Hassan confirmed the attack, saying the security agencies have sealed off the scene for further investigation.

Jazera hotel is one of the luxury hotels in the capital, and sometimes hosts government high level meetings.

Somalia-based militant group Al-Shabaab has claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it was a revenge for the Africa Union and Somali forces' recent operation in Dinsoor and Bardhere regions of southern Somalia.

The attack comes a day after a Somali lawmaker was killed in Mogadishu in the latest incidents of insecurity in the capital. Al-Shabaab later claimed responsibility for the death of the legislator. Endit