AT LEAST five people were killed in jihadist attacks in the Somalian capital Mogadishu in today’s early hours.

Two children were among the dead after al-Shabab stormed two police stations.

“The terrorists attacked the suburbs of Mogadishu and targeted our police stations and checkpoints. Our security defeated the enemy,” Internal Security Minister Abdullahi Nor said.

Police spokesman Abdifatah Adan Hassan said that a vehicle loaded with explosives was used during the attack, inflicting casualties on civilians.

“Two young girls died in the incident while 16 other civilians and three members of the security forces were wounded,” he said.

The assailants made their escape in a police vehicle, Mr Hassan said. A separate attack targeted the Darussalam suburb on the outskirts of Mogadishu.

Al-Shabab spokesman Abdiasis Abu Musab claimed that the al-Qaida-affiliated group had overrun a number of military bases and seized vehicles and weapons during the raids.

The jihadists have been fighting the Somalian government in a decade-long insurgency as they seek to impose a caliphate in the east African country.