Mogadishu Bomb

Yet again brutal and senseless carnage has been wreaked on innocent Somali people, already facing the arduous task of staying alive in what surely must be the worst country on earth. At least seventy people were killed when a car bomb exploded in Mogadishu – suspected to have been planted by the Islamist militant group Al-Shabab:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-15166107

What really touched me was the testimony of MOHAMMED DHORE, a young Somali reporter who I have had the privilege to work with over the years. He says it’s the worst thing he’s ever seen.. and that is saying a lot for someone who has witnessed murder in front of his eyes, and worked tirelessly to report the suffering of the thousands of people in camps outside Mogadishu who’ve been hit by the crippling famine and drought in the Horn of Africa.

Every time Dhore answers the phone he is willing to travel the length and breadth of the city to get the story, and on several occasions I had to talk him out of going to collect vox pops in the main market areas out of fear for his safety. I’m just sorry that such horrific killing and violence in the heart of his own community looks will be his daily bread for a long time to come.