Somalia | Al-Shabab bombs UN van, 4 UNICEF workers killed

The scene following a bomb attack on a van carrying U.N. employees in Garowe, northern Somalia

A bomb exploded yesterday on a van carrying U.N. employees in northern Somalia, killing at least seven people and wounding several others, police and U.N. officials said. Al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the attack. UNICEF said in a statement that four of its employees were reportedly killed in the bombing of their van, which was painted white and had UN painted on the side in blue letters. Four others were seriously injured, the U.N. children’s agency said. Both foreigners and Somalis were casualties of the attack in Garowe, the capital of the semiautonomous Puntland region, Col. Ali Salad, a senior police officer in Puntland, told The Associated Press by phone. He said 10 people had died though Garowe Police Chief Col. Ahmed Abdullahi Samatar said seven died. The U.N. representative to Somalia, Nicholas Kay, said in a Twitter post that he is “shocked and appalled by loss of life.” The bomb was apparently planted under a seat and was detonated by remote control, said police official Yusuf Ali.

Smoke rises after a Saudi-led airstrike in Sana’a

Yemen | Large explosions from airstrikes rock capital

Saudi-led airstrikes on weapons caches in Yemen’s rebel-held capital yesterday caused massive explosions that shattered windows, sent residents scrambling for shelter and killed a local TV presenter. The explosions were the most powerful seen in the city since a Saudi-led air campaign against Iran-allied Shiite rebels, known as Houthis, began last month. The blasts deposited a layer of soot on the top floors of residential buildings and left the streets littered with glass. Anti-aircraft fire rattled across the city in response. Mushroom clouds rose over Fag Atan, in the mountainous outskirts of Sana’a, where the capital’s largest weapons caches are located. The site has been targeted several times during the three-week air campaign. A Yemeni official said the Saudi-led warplanes are demolishing parts of the mountain, hoping to uncover and destroy Scud missiles. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the press.

Two young girls comfort each other outside a school in Barcelona

Spain | Police detain student for killing teacher with crossbow

Spanish police said yesterday they have detained a boy, who is under 14 years of age, for the suspected killing of a male teacher and the wounding of several others at a school in Barcelona However, police spokesmen would not confirm whether the unidentified boy was a student at the school in a working class Barcelona neighborhood where the attack took place soon after the school day started. Though spokesmen confirmed that the teacher was killed with a weapon that had a blade, they would not say what type was used. Spanish National Television and other media outlets reported that the boy was carrying a knife and a crossbow. Two other teachers and two students were also said to have suffered minor injuries in the attack. The attack took place at a public high school for students aged 12-16.