Suicide bomber kills 2 at Turkish military base in Somalia

A suicide bomber detonated inside a Turkish military training base in Somalia's capital and killed two people, police said Tuesday.

It was the first time the Turkish base in Mogadishu, Turkey's largest overseas military base, has been attacked by the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab extremist group.

The Somalia-based group quickly claimed responsibility for the attack, according to Radio al-Furqan, one of the group’s radio affiliates.

Police Capt. Mohamed Hussein said the attack occurred as new military cadets were doing their morning drills.

It was not immediately clear if any Turkish officers were killed.

Col. Ahmednor Abdulle, a Somali military officer, said an investigation has been launched into how the bomber managed to sneak into the base.

Turkey has a significant presence in Somalia and operates one of a number of foreign military training operations in the Horn of Africa nation long destabilized by conflict.

Al-Shabab controls parts of southern and central Somalia and often targets the capital with suicide bombings.