First, a hand grenade was thrown at Bilan hotel, often visited by lawmakers and politicians, according to police sources as cited by the Garowe Online news website.
Soon after that, a suicide attacker caused another blast in a restaurant near the hotel, which resulted in high casualties, according to officials.
DEVELOPING: Death toll of #Baidoa double suicide bombings reaches 17 & 23 injured after two men wearing suicide vests blew themselves in Bilan Hotel and nearby Beder cafeteria simultaneously, according to police chief. Hospital admin confirmed the death toll. pic.twitter.com/rQYWRmN7RV
— Abdalle Ahmed Mumin (@Cabdalleaxmed) 13 октября 2018 г.
Al-Shabaab militants, who have sworn allegiance to the al-Qaeda terror group, claimed responsibility for the attack. Somalia has been engulfed in violence since the eruption of a civil war between clan-based armed factions in the early 1990s. Al-Shabaab is staging numerous attacks across the country in an attempt to impose a radical version of Sharia law.