On 14 October 2017, two truck bombings took place in Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia, killing at least 587 people and injuring 316 others. Almost all of the casualties were caused by one of the trucks, which detonated when the driver, while attempting to escape from security officials, crashed through a barrier and exploded in the Hodan District, destroying a hotel; the intended target of the attack is believed to have been a secure compound housing international agencies and troops. The second blast happened close by, killing two people. A third explosives-laden truck was captured by police.Though no organisation claimed responsibility, officials stated that a key member of the cell that carried it out told them Islamist group al-Shabaab was responsible.The attack is the deadliest in Somalia's history, surpassing the 2011 Mogadishu bombing that killed 100 people. It is the second deadliest terrorist attack in African history, and the continent's deadliest bombing. It is also the third deadliest terrorist bombing attack and the seventh-deadliest act of terrorism in modern history, surpassed only by the 1990 massacre of Sri Lankan Police officers in Sri Lanka, the 2008 Christmas massacres in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, 2007 Yazidi communities bombings, the 2020 Mai Khadra massacre, the 2014 Camp Speicher massacre in Iraq, and the September 11 attacks in the United States. In response to the bombings, Somali president Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed declared three days of mourning.