Somalia’s al-Shabab militants say an American citizen was one of two suicide bombers behind a recent attack on an African Union military base in the capital.
A pro-Shabab radio station and website identified the Somali-American bomber as a young man named Abdisalan. It said he emigrated to the United States at the age of two.
U.S. authorities have not verified the claim, although several American citizens of Somali origin are believe to have traveled to Somalia to join the insurgency.
On Saturday, two suicide bombers detonated explosives outside the AU peacekeeping base in Mogadishu. It is unclear how many soldiers were killed in the attack, but al Shabab says dozens died.
Al Shabab is fighting to topple the U.N.-backed Somali government and set up an Islamic state in Somalia. The militant group has lost ground to Somali government and African Union troops in recent months but still controls considerable territory in southern and central Somalia.