NAIROBI, Kenya, Nov. 7 (UPI) -- The prime minister of Somalia survived an assassination attempt this weekend.
Five people were killed and 12 injured in the attack on Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Gedi as he visited the chaotic capital Mogadishu. The prime minister was unharmed.
Gedi was visiting from Jowhar, where a transitional government is based.
A news release distributed by the Somali government's liaison office in Nairobi sheds light on who was behind yesterday's attempt on the prime minister's life. A remote-controlled bomb placed on the road on which the prime minister's convoy was traveling exploded.
According to the release carried on the somalinet.com Web site, the assassination attempt was part of a campaign against Somali intellectuals, former senior army officers and local representatives of international humanitarian organizations.
Many high profile men have been killed in Mogadishu in recent months. The prime minister also escaped another bomb explosion in May, the statement said.
A fact-finding committee has been set up to investigate the latest attempt.
Anti-government Mogadishu tribal-based faction leaders distanced themselves from the attack and condemned it.
