Four killed in car explosion in Somalia's Mogadishu

At least three Somali security forces and a bomber were killed when a car loaded with explosive blew up as the security officers tried to intercept it at a checkpoint in Mogadishu on Wednesday, police said.

A police source told Xinhua two of the forces killed in the Al-Shabaab attack were from the police while the third was a soldier from National Intelligence Agency (NISA).

The driver of the vehicle was also killed as he drove into a police check point in Wadajir district, the officer said.

"We killed the driver of the car as it approached the checkpoint but the explosives went off shortly as the forces tried to detonate," a senior police officer at the scene Mohamed Dahir told Xinhua.

Police sources said the soldier from the bomb disposal unit died in the blast while trying to demobilize the bombs loaded in the vehicle.

The police officer said two occupants of the car fled the scene. The militant group Al-Shabaab has claimed responsibility.

The officer said no arrest has been made but a major manhunt for the two attackers who fled the scene is underway.

The Al-Shabaab militant group has claimed responsibility. The militants have stepped up their onslaught on the government after being forced out of the capital and other major urban areas in Somalia by national and Africa Union forces

Their targets have included hotels, military checkpoints, and the presidential palace. Endit