At least 358 are dead and more than 500 are injured as a result of the deadliest terrorist attack in Somali history. On Saturday, October 17th, a large truck filled with military grade explosives detonated near a hotel in the Somali capital of Mogadishu. Sources close to the Somali government said that the truck was stopped at a nearby checkpoint when the driver suddenly accelerated, crashing into a barrier, causing it to explode. This explosion ignited a fuel tanker parked in the area, causing even more damage.

The attack is believed to have been perpetrated by terrorist group, Al-shabab, which has been active in Somalia for much of the past decade, though no group has claimed responsibility yet (in the past, Al-shabab has refused to take responsibility for events which may damage its image in the eyes of the Somali public has). However, the attack was first reported by Al-shabaab linked media outlets. The attack comes after newly elected Somali President Mohammed Abdullahi Mohammed vowed to eradicate Al-shabab, and after U.S. President Donald Trump has vowed to increase efforts against the group.

The attack was likely directed at the Somali ministry of foreign affairs, but its effects were wide reaching. Dr Mohamed Yusuf, the director of Mogadishu’s Medina hospital, said his staff had been “overwhelmed by both dead and wounded. This is really horrendous, unlike any other time in the past.” Turkey’s ministry of foreign affairs approved aid in the form of an air ambulance to transport those seriously wounded, though many are still without adequate care. “There’s nothing I can say. We have lost everything,” said Zainab Sharif, a mother of four who lost her husband in the attack. Many bodies were unidentifiable and buried immediately, while others were taken by their families and buried. “It’s a sad day. This is how merciless and brutal they are, and we have to unite against them” said information minister Abdirahman Omar Osman.

The source of the weapons is not clear, though it has been suggested that they were stolen from the African Union’s Peacekeeping Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), which has roughly 20,000 troops in the area. The attack comes unexpectedly, as Al-shabaab, an Al-Qaeda affiliate since 2011, have been pushed out to the Somali countryside and small towns. But it is a concerning sign that it may become more active. The U.S. military has increased drone strikes and other efforts this year against al-Shabaab, and a U.S. special forces operative was killed in a skirmish with the group earlier this year, which was the first American combat casualty in Africa since the Black Hawk episode in Mogadishu in 1993.