In Somalia, police are investigating a suicide attack by a female bomber who entered a highly guarded local government building and killed a senior official on Wednesday. Abdulaziz Billow has the story from Mogadishu.

The death toll from Wednesday's suicide blast in Mogadishu has risen to eleven after two more victims succumbed to their injuries.

On Thursday, twelve blast victims were airlifted to Qatar including the mayor of Mogadishu Abdirahman Omar Osman - senior local government officials were among those killed.

Police are yet to issue an official statement on the attack but a female bomber is said to have detonated explosives at a security gathering chaired by the city mayor and district heads.

ABDULAZIZ BILLOW MOGADISHU, SOMALIA "It's the fifth time the insurgent group has used a female suicide bomber to carry out attacks - in 2011, a female bomber killed the country's national security minister at his official residence marking a major change of tactic by the group on high profile targets."

MOHAMED AHMED INDEPENDENT POLITICAL ANALYST "The use of female suicide bombers isn't a new thing for Al-Shabaab but this clearly shows how weak the group has become. In the past, it employed conventional men fighting government forces but the use of women to carry out attacks proves Al-Shabaab's weakness."

Investigations by the police are expected to reveal how the female bomber was able to smuggle explosives inside the heavily guarded local government headquarters and target a security meeting - police are also yet to identify if the bomber had inside support.

A number of people have been arrested in connection with the attack. Analysts say such attacks on top officials are aimed at weakening the country's efforts in eradicating the terror group.

MOHAMED AHMED INDEPENDENT POLITICAL ANALYST "The government has launched offensives recently in several fronts - this is why Al-Shabaab is trying to cover its loss through attacks in the city. Attacks on government institutions are supposed to shift the focus on the fight and that is why they are using insiders sometimes to carry out attacks."

Al-Shabaab says its target was an American national recently appointed to head the United Nations Mission in Somalia - who had just left the local government office before the attack. Major government installations have been put on high alert following the recent attack - experts now hope the government invests heavily on intelligence so as to thwart such high-profile attacks and strengthens ground offensive to dislodge the fighters from its strongholds. AB, CGTN, MOG – SOM.