At least 10 people were killed on Tuesday in a crowded market in Mogadishu, the Somali capital, after multiple blasts.
The incident happened within the Bakara market in the city.
Three nurses at Erdogan Hospital in Mogadishu told reporters that more than 20 injured people had been brought to the facility.
A businessman within the market said he helped carry dead and wounded people from some of the shops.
Somali police have said investigations are underway.
The cause of the blasts was not immediately clear, although the al-Qaeda-affiliated group al-Shabab routinely carries out bombings in high-density areas across the country.
Al-Shabab has been battling Somalia’s federal government and an African Union (AU)-mandated peacekeeping force for years, seeking to establish a new government based on its interpretation of Islamic law.
Bakara, Mogadishu’s largest market, teems with traders and is where most residents buy their food, clothes, medicine, electronics, and other items daily.
Authorities did not disclose the motive of the attacks against the businesses, but a security officer told reporters that the attacks were related to the installation of CCTV cameras by the businesses.
Last year, Somalia’s security agencies urged businesses to install security cameras.
Some of the store owners said they later received anonymous calls from people claiming to be from al-Shabab, who warned them against the installations. The militants reportedly feared the cameras would help security branches identify al-Shabab members.
Somali security agencies have recorded incidents of al-Shabab militants intimidating businesses as part of an extortion campaign.
The United States has reported that al-Shabab generates an estimated $100 million annually that is collected through illicit taxation, mandatory donations and extortions.
The Somali government last year claimed al-Shabab’s revenues had been cut in half following the implementation of security measures, including the shutting down of suspected bank and mobile money accounts and targeting militant taxation officials.
