Somalia's government spokesperson wounded in suicide bombing

Somalia's government spokesperson was wounded Sunday in a suicide bombing that the al-Shabab extremist group has claimed responsibility for.

Mohamed Ibrahim Moalimuu appeared to be the sole target in the attack near his residence by a busy intersection in the capital, Mogadishu. A statement from the prime minister's office called his wounds non-life-threatening.

It has been widely expected that such attacks would increase as tensions rise in Somalia over a national election that has been delayed for almost a year.

“Such attacks are purely politically motivated actions,” said Mohamed Abdulaziz Omar, a local civil society activist, adding that it also occurred in past elections in the Horn of Africa nation.