Hiiraan Online
Friday, March 11, 2016
MOGADISHU (HOL) – Somalia’s government sought to reassure travelers that Mogadishu’s airport is safe after the Al-Qaeda linked Al Shabab group bombed a Somali airliner which made an emergency landing with a gaping hole on its side last month.
A suspected suicide bomber detonated a bomb allegedly planted in a laptop inside Daallo airlines on early February which damaged the plane’s fuselage. One person thought to be the bomber died after he sucked out of the plane.
Mohamed Abdi Hayir, Somalia’s information minister said Friday that the government had reviewed the airport’s security and adequate security was put in place to better protect airport from further attacks.
“Security of the airport is guaranteed well-enough.” He told passengers waiting for their flights at the airport during a visit by a ministerial committee which inspected the airport’s security procedure.
Inconsistencies in Mogadishu airport’s security are now under a spotlight as security agencies eye ways to increase security to prevent further attacks.
The mid-air explosion in Daallo Airlines’ aircraft has sent alarm across the world as security experts warned that the attack showed jihadist group’s desire to add attacks on air transportation into their global jihad catalog.
In October last year, a Russian airliner was brought down by a bomb in Egypt’s Sinai, killing all 224 people on board. The ISIS group claimed it was behind the bombing.