Turkey's president opened a new Turkish embassy in Somalia's capital on Friday amid heavy security less than two days after Islamic extremists attacked a hotel in the city, killing 15 people, AP reports.
The al-Shabab group, which is waging an insurgency against Somalia's weak government, has claimed responsibility for the assault on the Ambassador Hotel in Mogadishu.
This is Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's third visit to Somalia. He is the only non-African president to visit war-ravaged Somalia in decades. Erdogan visited Somalia last year, a day after al-Shabab attacked a hotel hosting Turkish delegates and killed at least six people.
On Friday, Erdogan cut a ribbon to the new beachfront Turkish embassy in Mogadishu, calling it the largest and most advanced Turkish embassy in Africa.
