A suicide car bombing near a hotel in Mogadishu regularly used by lawmakers cost at least 11 lives.
The bomber rammed the vehicle into a cafe outside the hotel.
Initial reports suggested the bomber opened fire on people before detonating the explosives.
SOUNDBITE: Somalia police spokesman, Colonel Abdullahi Barise, saying (Somali):
"Here, as you see, is where the explosion happened. It's a restaurant where innocent people drink their tea, not a police station. I'm sure al Shabaab are behind this attack."
That suspicion was later confirmed by the al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab militants who said they carried out the attack.
The bombing is an indication of how fragile security is in the Somali capital even after last year's withdrawal of the Islamist rebels.
Paul Chapman, Reuters
