“At 9:10 am, a terrorist car loaded with explosives … crashed into a checkpoint near Sayidka Junction. Security forces opened fire on the car as they rushed to the presidential palace in Mogadishu,” a police statement said.
Police said the suicide bomber was also killed in the explosion.
“Thank goodness the vigilance of the security forces has saved people from the threat of terrorism posed to the innocent Somali people,” the statement said.
There was no immediate claim to responsibility for the attack that took place during a political crisis in Somalia after President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo’s mandate expired on Feb. 8 without timely elections.
Saturday’s incident was the second major explosion in the Somali capital in recent weeks.
Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for that attack through a statement broadcast by Andalus Radio, its spokesman channel. CNN has not been able to independently verify this claim.
The insurgent group is trying to make Somalia a fundamentalist Islamic state. It has previously claimed responsibility for other attacks in Mogadishu, including a truck bombing in December that killed 85 people.