# The Hargeisa and Bosaso bombings of 29 October 2008

> The coordinated suicide bombings in Hargeisa and Bosaso on 29 October 2008: the targets, the death tolls, the reactions, and what is known about who carried them out.

Source page: https://calankii.com/en/history/hargeisa-bosaso-bombings-2008/
Last checked: 2026-11-12
Publisher: Calankii (https://calankii.com)

## In short

The bombings of 29 October 2008 hit [Somaliland](/en/states/somaliland-1991-to-2026/) and [Puntland](/en/states/puntland/), where, Amnesty International noted, such attacks had been rare compared with south-central Somalia. This page records what the sources report. It is part of the history of [al-Shabaab](/en/history/al-shabaab/) and of [Somaliland](/en/institutions/somaliland-armed-forces/) security.

## The attacks

At mid-morning on Wednesday 29 October 2008 three cars drove at the same time into compounds in Hargeisa housing the presidency (described by Amnesty International as President [Dahir Riyale Kahin](/en/people/dahir-riyale-kahin/)'s private residence), the offices of the UN Development Programme, and the Ethiopian consulate, which suffered the worst damage and the most casualties. At the UNDP offices one vehicle forced its way through the security barrier after the guards refused to open the gate. Two attacks hit government security offices in [Bosaso](/en/regions/bari/) at about the same time ([Amnesty International, public statement AFR 52/018/2008, 30 October 2008](https://www.amnesty.org/fr/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/afr520182008en.pdf)).

## The dead

Reuters, reported by the *Mail & Guardian*, counted at least 28 dead: about 25 in Hargeisa, including 3 at the presidency, at least 20 at the Ethiopian mission and 2 at the UNDP building, and 3 in Bosaso, where two car bombs hit the intelligence service compound ([*Mail & Guardian*, Reuters, 29 October 2008](https://mg.co.za/article/2008-10-29-suicide-bombers-kill-at-least-28-in-somalia)). The UN's humanitarian office confirmed that two of its national staff were killed and six injured (Amnesty International, 2008). Bari's governor, Muse Gelle, said of Bosaso: "The two cars and their drivers were blown to pieces" (*Mail & Guardian*, 2008).

## Reactions and responsibility

No group claimed responsibility. Ethiopia's foreign minister, Seyoum Mesfin, said: "It is the work of the usual terrorists who try to create instability" (*Mail & Guardian*, 2008). Amnesty International condemned the attacks, called for prompt and impartial investigations, and noted that such attacks had been rare in Somaliland (Amnesty International, 2008). Wikipedia records that al-Shabaab was believed responsible and that the United States blamed al-Qaeda working through al-Shabaab ([Wikipedia, 2008 Hargeisa–Bosaso bombings](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_Hargeisa%E2%80%93Bosaso_bombings), citing the BBC and Reuters).

**Shirwa Ahmed.** One of the Hargeisa bombers was Shirwa Ahmed, who had grown up in Minneapolis. NBC News described him in 2011 as the first known American suicide bomber in Somalia, and reported that at least 20 Somali-Americans were believed to have joined al-Shabaab ([NBC News, 2 June 2011](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/wbna43258042)).

## Sources differ

- **Deaths.** At least 28 (Reuters), 30 (CNN, cited by Wikipedia) or 21 (NBC News, 2011); Puntland did not publish a figure for Bosaso (Amnesty International).
- **Where Shirwa Ahmed died.** Somaliland (NBC News); some reports place his attack in Puntland.

## Read the primary sources yourself

- Amnesty International, public statement on the Hargeisa and Bosaso bombings (2008): [PDF](https://www.amnesty.org/fr/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/afr520182008en.pdf).
- *Mail & Guardian* (Reuters), "Suicide bombers kill at least 28 in Somalia" (2008): [article](https://mg.co.za/article/2008-10-29-suicide-bombers-kill-at-least-28-in-somalia).

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