The Somali President, Mr. Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, arrived in Baidoa, the administrative seat of South West State, on Friday afternoon, leading a delegation. After his visit to Baidoa, videos of loud explosions from mortar attacks at the airport were widely circulated on social media. According to BBC Somali Services, two individuals who were present at the airport at the time of the attack confirmed the news. One of them is a South West State official and the other is a journalist. The BBC Somali Services also confirmed that one of the mortars landed 200 meters from the plane carrying the president and his entourage. The President was greeted with a guard of honor from troops and was later escorted peacefully from the airport with his entourage. Both the South West State official and the journalist confirmed that two mortars landed in the airport fence. One landed when the president’s plane was about to land and the other landed when the president was about to receive the guard of honor from units of the Somali army. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack at Baidoa airport, but the militant group Al-Shabab, who are engaged in battle with the Somali government and African Union troops, has launched similar attacks in the past.
