It’s one year since the worst terrorist attack in the region devastated Somalia’s capital Mogadishu leaving at least 500 people dead and many others with debilitating injuries or still missing —but hope for a better future is still burning strong.
While the country has seen its fair share of catastrophic militant attacks in its recent history, last year’s October 14 truck bombs at the busy Zoobe junction —since renamed October 14 in memory of the victims— were the bloodiest.
October 14 in memory of the victims— were the bloodiest. But for immediate former Mayor of Mogadishu and Governor of Benadir Region Thabit Abdi Mohamed, who led the massive mobilization efforts in response to the disaster, the city has emerged much stronger against the perpetrators of the heinous attack.
“One year down the line, I feel we have come out stronger. For the first time, we realized that when we come together great things happen. The attack united the people like never before and through that unity, we faced the disaster together and came through,” recalls Thabit, who still wears his signature red armband that he began donning last year after the attack to remember the victims.
“It’s true that many families are still experiencing the trauma and pain of losing their loved ones or caring for the injured but hope for better times ahead is still stronger than ever.” \
The former Mayor, who was relieved of his duties 3 months after the attack over political differences with the President, had passed the scene of the blast only 10 minutes before the attack, as he headed to his office just a few kilometers away. He was about to settle down to work when he was jolted by the powerful blasts.
“I immediately went to the scene. I have never seen such a horror in my life. Burnt bodies and cars all over the place. Destroyed buildings. I felt helpless. I realized that this was a disaster we could not handle alone, given how weak and sometimes even non-existent our emergency services were at the time,” he says.
His repeated and impassioned appeals for help on mass and social media brought out large numbers of people to lend a hand to the disaster response, working day and night to retrieve victims from the rubble, and to clear the debris blocking rescue operation in the key intersection.
The city’s main hospitals were overwhelmed by the number of people who came to donate blood and had to turn away many people due to limited blood storage capacity.
Meanwhile Somali nationals living within and outside the country responded quickly to appeals for donations to help the victims of the attack under the ‘Gurmad Qaran’ or ‘Save the Nation’ initiative, raising at millions of dollars. Neigbouring countries and the international community also rushed in with help including airlifting injured for specialized medical care.
