A suicide car bomb attack on a building housing Burundian peacekeepers wounded at least seven people in the Somali capital Tuesday, witnesses and an African Union official said.

Officials said they did not know if a body at the scene was the bomber's or a victim's.

The military wing of Somalia's main Islamic fighting group claimed responsibility for the attack in a southern neighborhood of Mogadishu.

"A car driving at breakneck speed passed us and within seconds turned around and rammed into a locked gate that is not normally used. Then we heard a huge explosion whose dust covered us," said Abdullahi Hussein Sabriye. He said he witnessed the attack from a tea shop 165 feet.

"A huge explosion occurred outside the building where Burundian peacekeepers are based," said Maj. Bahoku Barigye, the African Union force spokesman, adding two soldiers were wounded.

"One man, believed to be a Somali, died on the spot. I'm not sure if he was the suicide bomber or not," Barigye said.

PHOTO CAPTION

A Somali soldier stands among abandoned houses due to heavy fighting near the Stadium in Mogadishu.

BBC