Abdirahman Omar Osman, Mogadishu mayor, dies after suicide bombing Published duration 1 August 2019

image copyright Getty Images image caption Mayor of Mogadishu Abdirahman Omar Osman died from his injuries in Doha

The mayor of Somalia's capital Mogadishu has died a week after being wounded in a suicide attack that killed at least six other people.

The female bomber blew herself up inside the office of Mayor Abdirahman Omar Osman during a security meeting.

Mr Osman, who fled to the UK during the civil war in the 1990s, became a councillor in London before returning in 2008 to help rebuild Somalia.

Militant Islamist group al-Shabab said it carried out the attack.

The mayor died in Doha, Qatar, where he was receiving treatment.

Al-Shabab's apparent target was the new UN special envoy to Somalia, James Swan, a US citizen. He had already left the building after meeting the mayor on 24 July.

It is unclear how the bomber managed to enter the heavily guarded offices.

Other victims included high-ranking local officials.

Who was the mayor?

Mr Osman fled Somalia in the early 1990s as a refugee, before achieving a postgraduate degree and UK citizenship. He also worked as a housing manager in the London borough of Ealing.

He returned to Somalia in 2008, where he served as information minister before becoming mayor of Mogadishu last year.

Al-Shabab seeks to overthrow Somalia's central government and has been carrying out regular attacks in Mogadishu, despite the heavy presence of African Union peacekeepers and US-trained Somali troops.

The group is affiliated with al-Qaeda and remains a powerful presence in rural Somalia.

Few politicians did more, risked more

Andrew Harding, BBC Africa correspondent

In a dangerous city of bitter factions, he always stood out, a gentle, decent man - focused on the business of getting things done.

His nickname was Engineer Yarisow - the small engineer - a reference to his height, his qualifications, and his practical nature.

Like many Somalis, he'd fled abroad during the civil war and spent decades in London. Engineer Yarisow became a British citizen, a Labour councillor and a pillar of the community.

But he left it all behind to return to Mogadishu a decade ago. It was a brave move and, as he knew, a risky one.

Since then, thousands of members of the diaspora have gone back to Somalia to help rebuild it, in defiance of the Islamist militants of al-Shabab.

I met Engineer Yarisow many times in Mogadishu - where he was first a cabinet minister, then a spokesman, and until his death, the city's mayor.

Somalia's journey back to stability has been long, and remains unfinished.

But it is, I think, fair to argue that few people - few politicians - did more, risked more, gave more than Engineer Yarisow.