A woman in Somalia has been shot by dead by Islamist militants for refusing to wear a veil, her relatives have said.

They say the woman was killed by a gunmen belonging to the al-Shabaab group outside her hut near the town of Hosingow at 4.30GMT.

Her family told the BBC they had ordered the woman to put her veil on, and shot her after returning to find she was still not wearing it.

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Her relatives asked to remain unidentified for fear they would be attacked.

An spokesman for al-Shabaab denied shooting the unidentified woman and said that area is not fully under the control of militants, according to the BBC.

Al-Shabaab has links to al-Qa'ida and controls parts of southern and central Somalia. It has enforced strict rules in place in areas where it exerts control, including dress and behaviour codes.

The group most recently claimed responsibility for a bus attack in Kenya that killed seven people. -