Al Shabaab, the Islamist terror outfit that is fighting the UN-backed Somali government, did not immediately claim responsibility.
Al Shabaab has been able to carry out increasingly deadly bombings despite losing most of its territory in the country to African Union peacekeepers supporting Somali government.
This month, Somalia elected a new president, Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed. The dual US-Somali citizen and former prime minister is better known by his nickname, “Farmajo”.
The Horn of Africa country has been torn apart by civil war since 1991. Aid agencies are warning that a severe drought has placed large swathes of the country at risk of famine.
The explosion is the first big attack in the Somali capital since the election of new President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed although several mortar blasts claimed by Al-Shabaab terrorists marred the official handover of power last week.
Witnesses said the bombing targeted an intersection in southern Mogadishu’s Madina district where soldiers, civilians and traders were present.
