A veiled woman and two other suicide bombers exploded cars outside the base of Somalia's weak government on Thursday, killing themselves and five others hours after Ethiopia took another step toward war with its Islamic rivals in the country.
Besides the bombers, the others killed were three accomplices and two policemen, officials said. The suicide bombing was only the second in the country's history.
Officials of Somalia's Ethiopian-backed government blamed the attacks on foreign al-Qaeda fighters. Somalia's president has claimed Islamic extremists have drawn up a hit list of top officials in his weak administration.
In addition to the dead on Thursday, four people were injured in the attack at a checkpoint outside Baidoa, the only town the government controls.
Three cars arrived at a government checkpoint "and as the police tried to check them, they exploded," Somali Deputy Defense Minister Salad Ali Jelle said. He later said that two policemen were also killed, bringing the death toll to eight.
"We have captured three who were with them who have tried to flee," the minister said. "The dead include non-Somalis, they are al-Qaeda supporters."
No one claimed responsibility. The Islamic group denied it was behind the bombing.
In Ethiopia earlier on Thursday, the country's parliament authorized military action if attacked by the Islamic movement, which has declared holy war on Ethiopia over its troop incursions.
Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi told lawmakers the country had already suffered attacks on Ethiopian soil by insurgent groups working closely with bitter rival Eritrea and Islamic forces in Somalia. The resolution authorized "any lawful or constitutional measures necessary to counter and stand up to any attacks or incursions on or into Ethiopia."
Tensions are high in Somalia, where the Islamic movement and the transitional government are vying for control. Analysts fear a war could engulf the entire region.
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