With the acts of terrorism being very prevalent in the past decades, more violent acts have been occurring, especially in the Middle East. Most recently on October 14, another act of terror came to be in Mogadishu, Somalia, the capital. Now the world’s deadliest attack, a bomb went off that “killed at least 358 people, injured 228 others, and left 56 taken place in the US and Europe” (Human Rights Watch). Many countries around the world pray for all those affected in these troubled times.

Here in the US and the Middle East, terrorism has been a very controversial, but common topic. From the shooting in the Pulse Nightclub in Orlando to the Boston Marathon bombing, and 9/11 causing panic and destruction, countless innocent people are killed for no good reason. Likewise, the bombing in Somalia has killed so many good people.

Even though no one terrorist group has owned up to the attacks, most speculation leads to Al-Shabab. The Somali and Kenyan governments have dealt with Al-Shabab before. This group has never stricken a western country before, so Somalia does not believe it is linked to the Americans (Human Rights Watch). Some investigators however, believe that the US’s involvement with Somalia has something to do with it. On October 16, the US sent a drone strike to possible Al-Shabab members. The terror group is still unknown, but it is still undergoing investigation.

According to NPR, some researchers are comparing the Somalia attack to 9/11. Eyder Peralta, an NPR East Africa correspondent, states that “this is the single deadliest attack in the history of Somalia. So just in terms of sheer numbers, the attack has really affected a whole lot of people in the capital.” Agreeing with the notion, Nick Deang (10) says that “this attack is similar, in the way that so many undeserving people died. It is really sad to see that there is so much hate in the world.”

As a reminder to Americans, these terrorist attacks are not just pinpointed onto US citizens but are just as common in the Middle East where most groups reside (Human Rights Watch). Although extremist assaults occur inside of the Middle East, many other countries are affected by them everyday. The US’s army is constantly watching over the civilians of Somalia until they recover from this vulgar act. Keep in mind that it will take a while until Somalia has fully recuperated. Prayers go out to the families and friends directly affected in this bombing, and blessings to all.