At least nine civilians are killed by car bombings in central Somalia.

After being driven from the area, Al-Shabab is taking credit for two car bombings in Hiraan.
Security officials and witnesses reported that two vehicle bombs detonated in the Hiraan region of central Somalia on Wednesday, killing several people and destroying several homes.
Ahmed Nur, a village elder, told Reuters that two enormous explosions woke everyone up this morning. "Many homes have been leveled to the ground, as we have observed. At least ten persons, including Macawisley [militia] militants, troops, and civilians, died.
Militia members and municipal authorities made a variety of tallies.
The local Mahas district's Macawisley representative Farah Abdullahi added that at least 10 individuals were killed in the explosions. According to Abdullahi Adan, a local security official, nine individuals perished in the explosions.
In a statement, the media department of Al-Shabab claimed responsibility, claiming it had "targeted apostate militias and soldiers."
Since 2007, the al-Qaeda affiliate has been fighting the Somalian government. Although it was driven out of Hiraan last year by government forces and Macawisley-affiliated clan militias, it has continued to launch attacks.
Mumin Mohamed Halane, the Mahas District Commissioner, informed state media that one bomb was intended for his home and the other for the residence of a federal senator.
Since President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud launched a military attack immediately after taking office in August of last year, Al-Shabab has been under pressure.
According to Osman Nur, a police commander in Mahas, "the terrorists, after [having] [been] crushed, turned to desperately targeting civilians, but this will not stop the desire of the people to continue fighting them."
He said, "They have killed innocent individuals in the explosions.
The government says it has killed hundreds of al-Shabab fighters and recaptured dozens of settlements, although different sides often give conflicting accounts of clashes.
