Somali militants 'behind' Uganda bomb blasts, dozens dead

The Somali Islamist group al-Shabab has said it was behind twin blasts which hit the Ugandan capital Kampala on Sunday, killing 74 people. A spokesman for the group, Sheikh Ali Mohamud Rage, threatened more attacks in a statement in Mogadishu. Police said the bombings targeted football fans watching the World Cup final. A Ugandan official said a Somali's head was found at the scene of one blast, and he may have been a suicide bomber. Ugandan peacekeepers are in Somalia, and al-Shabab has previously threatened Kampala. "Al-Shabab was behind the two bomb blasts in Uganda," Ali Mohamud Rage said. "We thank the mujahideen that carried out the attack. We are sending a message to Uganda and Burundi, if they do not take out their Amisom [African Union Mission in Somalia] troops from Somalia, blasts will continue and it will happen in Bujumbura [the Burundi capital] too." The explosions, which also injured about 70 people, ripped through a rugby club and an Ethiopian restaurant as football fans watched the last few minutes of the World Cup final.