Death toll from Mogadishu truck bombing rises to 512

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By BNO NEWS

The death toll from the truck bombing in Mogadishu in October has risen to at least 512, according to a Somali committee which is investigating the attack, making it one of the deadliest terrorist attacks in modern history.

The Zobe Rescue Committee, which was set up by the government to determine the death toll, told Reuters that at least 512 people are confirmed to have died in the attack. 316 others were injured, including 122 people who were airlifted to Turkey, Sudan, and Kenya for treatment.

The previous death toll stood at 358 as of October 20.

Authorities had previously warned that some of the victims may never be found because of the intense heat generated by the massive explosion. The committee spoke with relatives of those who may have been at the site of the blast to help determine how many people were killed.

It was not immediately clear whether the committee expects the death toll to rise even further.

The attack happened on October 14 when a large truck filled with explosives was detonated on a busy street near the Safari Hotel, causing a huge explosion which then ignited a nearby fuel tanker. Several buildings were completely destroyed.

No group has claimed responsibility for the bombing, but attacks in Somalia are usually carried out by the al-Qaeda-linked militant group Al-Shabaab, which has vowed to fight the administration of President Mohamed Abdullahi “Farmajo” Mohamed.

A death toll of 512 makes it one of the deadliest terrorist attacks in modern history, surpassed only by the bombings against the Yazidi communities in Iraq in 2007 and the attacks against the U.S. in 2001, when hijacked airliners were flown into the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington, D.C.

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