Separate attacks hit a U.S. military base in the Somali town of Baledogle and a European military convoy in the Somali capital Mogadishu on Monday, agencies reported.

A Reuters journalist saw a seriously damaged armored vehicle bearing a small Italian flag sticker in the capital of Mogadishu. It was unclear if there were any casualties.

Italy's defense ministry said in a statement that an Italian military convoy had been hit by an explosion.

Also on Monday morning, there was a bomb attack followed by small arms fire at a base operated by U.S. Special Forces, a security source told Reuters.

A Somali official told the Associated Press that a suicide car bomber detonated a vehicle packed with explosives at the gate of the base for U.S. and Somali forces.

The Baledogle base is where U.S. special forces train Somali commandos and from where many drone operations are launched.

Militants from Al-Shabab, an Al-Qaeda-linked terrorist group, have claimed responsibility for the attack on the U.S. base.