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LequteMan
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Islamist al-Shabab militants according to reports are attacking the presidential palace in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, and have gained entrance into the heavily fortified compound, with sounds of gunfire and explosions being heard now and then.
The BBC says President Mohamud was attending a function at the residence of the UN special envoy to Somalia, near the airport.
A large contingent of the Somali military police accompanied him, leaving the presidential palace, known as Villa Somalia, mainly under the protection of African Union soldiers, he says.
The presidential palace is the seat of government and many top government officials live and work there.
It is not clear if the prime minister and speaker of parliament are in the compound.
"We have entered the so-called presidential palace. We have now captured some parts of the palace and fighting is still going on," al-Shabab spokesman Sheikh Abdiasis Abu Musab told the Reuters news agency.
The raid is believed to have started with a car bomb at a barrier near the entrance to the compound, after which the militants attacked from two directions.
Al-Shabab militants staged a similar attack on Villa Somalia in February when a car bomb has exploded at the gate of the presidential palace, followed by a fierce gun battle inside.
