MOGADISHU, Somalia

Two Ethiopian peacekeepers were killed and four others wounded in a bomb blast in southern Somalia, officials said Tuesday.

A vehicle carrying Ethiopian peacekeepers part of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) was targeted in Garbaharey town in southwestern Gedo region, according to a local police official.

"The attackers used an improvised explosive device to target Ethiopian soldiers based in Garbaharey. Two Ethiopian peacekeepers were killed and several other people, including soldiers and civilians, are being treated in hospital," police officer Nour Bashir told Anadolu Agency over the phone.

Garbaharey, the capital of Gedo region, is located 449 kilometers (278 miles) southwest of Somalia’s capital Mogadishu.

The attack has been claimed by the Somalia-based al-Shabaab group, which is affiliated with al-Qaeda.

It comes a day after the Somalian military said it had killed 142 al-Shabaab militants in recent operations in the lower Shabelle region.

The group also claimed responsibility for Sunday’s suicide bombing in the autonomous region of Puntland targeting the governor of Somalia’s Nugal region.

At least one person was killed and four others -- including Nugal Governor Abdisalan Hassan Hersi and former Nugal region police chief Farah Galangoli -- suffered serious injuries in the attack in Garowe.