At least 37 people have been killed and more than 200 injured in a suicide bombing and gun attack at a popular beach in the Somali capital of Mogadishu, police said. The attack happened on Friday night, when residents of the city typically gather at the beach.

Agence France-Presse reported that police and witnesses said the bomber detonated his device late on Friday along the Lido beach before gunmen stormed the area. Government forces said they “neutralised” the attackers after a gunfight near the beach.

Videos posted on X showed bodies lying on the beach in the dark, and people running to safety.

“The overall number of the dead people we confirmed is 37,” Somali health minister Ali Haji Adam said in a press statement late on Saturday.

Eleven people are in intensive care units and a further 64 people remain in hospital with wounds, while 137 people with light injuries had been discharged after receiving treatment, he said.

A police spokesperson, Abdifatah Aden, told a press conference one attacker had blown himself up, three others had been killed and one was captured.

A spokesperson for the police warned Mogadishu’s residents to exercise caution in public and be wary of anyone behaving suspiciously.

Somalia’s president, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, convened an emergency session of the country’s security agencies on Saturday to find out how the attack happened. The Lido beach is in the Abdiaziz district, and is in one of the most affluent and relatively secure areas in the city. It has, however, previously been targeted in attacks.

Dr Abdikadir Abdirahmman, the director of the ambulance service, said the toll could rise.

Abdilqadir Yousuf Abdullahi, the medical director of the Somali-Sudanese Specialized hospital, said 14 victims were taken to his hospital. The emergency department of the hospital was overwhelmed with the influx, requiring immediate triage to prioritise treatment, Abdullahi said.

“Fourteen victims were rushed to our hospital. Medical staff worked tirelessly to stabilise and treat the injured but six of those victims have succumbed to the critical injuries as a result of being struck by shrapnel and bullets,” he added.

Somalia’s disaster management agency made an urgent appeal for blood donors.

The al-Qaida-linked al-Shabaab group, a jihadist organisation which the Somali government has been fighting since 2007, claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement published on an affiliated news site. Somalia’s president vowed to eradicate the group during his election campaign in 2022, but has faced setbacks in recent months as the group has rolled back government gains in south-central Somalia.

Omar Hashi, special presidential envoy for stabilization and civilian protection, said on X: “We are heartbroken by the heinous terrorist attack”.

Abdirahman Abdishakur, a veteran MP, said the images from Lido beach were “terrifying”. Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, a former president, said: “The fact that the terrorist attack coincided with this Friday night, when the beach is the most crowded, shows the hostility of the terrorists to the Somali people.”

Abdullahi Mohamed Warsame, 31, who was at Lido beach with his family, said the blast caused him to fall to the ground. “When I looked over, I saw my sister crunched up on the sand, with screams and cries for help all around us. I then got up, grabbed my sister and began running across the beach to get away.

“It was supposed to be a casual night, taking up the breeze at the beach, but it nearly cost us our lives.”

After the explosion, Farhan Ismail Dahir, 19, said he saw tens of people on the ground, “some screaming, others not moving at all”. He added: “I briefly froze, then one of my friends tugged me by the shoulder … that’s when the gunfire started.”

In a statement, Egypt’s ministry of foreign affairs condemned the attack and sent its condolences to the victims. Turkey, a significant security partner for the Somali government, said it “strongly condemned” the attack and said Ankara would “continue to stand by Somalia in its fight against terrorism”.